Touché
by Veneer and Spite
Summary: Muggle AU. After months of avoiding Tom Riddle like the plague, Hermione Granger suddenly finds herself getting affected by him all over again. But she's an unwilling participant of his little games, will Draco come to her rescue? [TomxHermione] [DracoxHermione] for now.
1. Touché

He looked different.

It was all Hermione could think when she saw Tom Riddle at the hallway just when the lift was about to close. Hair mussed, beard covering half of his face, and donned in an all-black-ensemble that hadn't made him as pristine as his clothes would usually do. He looked different. Too different from when she saw him last. But then again, when did she see him last?

_A flurry of laughter, and booming music. A chug of beer and four straight shots of tequila. A giggle and some teasing. _

_And then, an unexpected tug._

Hermione shook her head furiously to break her train of thought. "_It was a long time ago_," she whispered to herself. "_Stop thinking about it_." But she couldn't.

He haunted her.

She couldn't remember the last time she had seen him, but she was certain he didn't look the way he did now. It was such a wonder for Hermione. _The_ Tom Riddle, impeccable all around nice guy who everybody loves and every girl swoons over. Tom Riddle, always wearing pressed white dress shirts and sleek trousers with shiny Oxford shoes. Tom Riddle, who you could tell was very much aware of how attractive he is with the way he capitalizes on it. That was the Tom Riddle she knew. Good looking, clean, and nice. What the hell happened to him?

"Granger." Hermione's head shot up in shock upon hearing her name. "Malfoy." The shock must have shown in her face because Draco laughed and proceeded to stand next to her. "Didn't you leave already?" Hermione looked at Draco quizzically before it dawned on her that she was still in the lift but she was back at the top floor of the university building.

"Oh bullocks." Hermione cursed. Draco sniggered and said, "Where's your head at, Granger?" Hermione replied with a shove to his shoulder and an eye roll. Draco's snigger grew to a laugh and Hermione tried to hit him again, but this time Draco caught her wrist and pulled her closer to him so she wouldn't be able to move. He had on his annoying smirk. Hermione was about to bite Draco's forearm to be set free when the lift opened and in came another person. It was Tom Riddle.

Hermione yelped upon seeing Tom, and Draco then let go of her. _He's here. He's here. He's here. He's here._

"Draco." Tom nodded to Draco and then briefly acknowledged Hermione. Draco greeted back while Hermione just let out a barely there "Hi." Tom was in front of Draco and Hermione, his back straight with almost no sign of movement from his breathing. From the back, Tom didn't look so different. From the back, he looked just like her old Tom.

She shook her head again.

"Seriously, Granger what has gotten you so invested that your mind seems to be flying away a lot today?" She glared at Malfoy. _Not here, not now!_ "Mind your own business, Malfoy." Draco huffed and bit out, "Fine." The rest of the ride was quiet, until finally Draco got off. She breathed out a sigh of relief before taking it all back when she looked up and saw black.

Draco got off but Tom didn't. It's just her and Tom now. But _why? Doesn't he park in the first level? I'm sure he does! I've been parking on the third level to avoid him! _

Her mind was on a riot and her palms were sweating. She had been able to interact with Tom almost normally after _that incident_. But that was because their interactions since then have only been short greetings when they see each other by chance. She has not been alone with him ever since that incident and she hasn't prepared herself for this at all.

_Okay, Hermione. Breathe. It's okay. Maybe he parked in the second level because the first one is full? That's why you chose the third level, remember? You think ahead. You knew this might happen. It's okay. It's just one level. He'll get off on the second and then you can breathe again._

But they passed the second level and the lift didn't stop. But suddenly, it did.

"You have got to be bloody kidding me." Hermione gasped and clasped her mouth. She hadn't meant to say that out loud. But she couldn't help it, because this was just brilliant. The lift just had to malfunction now of all times when she's just so eager to get away from Tom.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist, Granger. I'll alert the maintenance crew that we're stuck here." Tom, calm as ever, then proceeded to the panel and pressed the emergency button and talked to the maintenance people. "See?" He smirked at her, looking at her as if he was talking to a whining child. 'We're going to be fine. We just have to wait for them to fix the lift." He stretched his arm to the side as if to offer her a seat. "Now how about you go and make yourself comfortable?" His eyes were twinkling with amusement at her obvious distress.

"Why, thanks, Tom. I'm really calm now." Hermione said through gritted teeth, and before she could stop herself, she screeched, "if you had parked in the first level the way you usually do, I wouldn't be stuck here with you!" Tom lifted one brow at what she said, and Hermione again gasped at her too big and too loud mouth. _Bullocks_.

"Why, Granger, if I didn't know any better, I would say you were stalking me." One side of his mouth tugged to form a smirk and she just knew what he would say next was going to infuriate her. "Maybe you actually still have that little crush on me." And there it is. She was poised to slap him, but just like earlier, her wrist was caught and she was pulled close to Tom. Only this time, the face that greeted her was not an amused smirk, but a glowering snarl and glinting eyes of malice. She shivered.

"What? Being this close to me bothers you now?" His face came even nearer to hers, "You'd prefer it if Malfoy was the one you were stuck with, wouldn't you?" His grip on her tightened and Hermione whimpered. "Tell me, Hermione, if Draco were here instead of me, would the two of you be _fucking _right now?"

She bit him. He yelped.

"How dare you?!" Hermione glared at Tom's befuddled face. "I will not allow you to just insult me like that, you - you - you big arse!" She was fuming and very much aware of how much she sounded like a petulant child, but she could not help it. She was about to fire him with more insults when Tom suddenly let out a low chuckle and stepped forward. Hermione froze.

"What are you doing?" She stammered, he smirked. Tom continued stepping closer towards her. "Where do you think you're going?!" At this point, the more Tom stepped forward, the more Hermione would step back until finally having nowhere else to go. She winced. She fell right into his trap.

"Oh, what's wrong, _Hermione_?" Tom had her caged on the corner of the lift, "why do you look so frightened?" He inched his face closer to hers. Breathing slowly, letting her really feel him. "Last time we were this close, you had a different expression on your face." Hermione flinched. "I would just love to see that again. Can't I see it again?"

Tom's voice was so low, so intense. Hermione forgot herself for a moment. Suddenly she's back in his car, hair mussed, and lips swollen. She shivered from her vivid recollection; feeling as intoxicated as back then. _It's his scent. _His clean yet also heady scent was every bit as seductive as she could remember. His face, although now mostly covered by a tuff of facial hair, was still as smooth as marble and firmly chiseled. Up close, she could see that his beard gave him an even more masculine appeal. He looked rugged, yes, but he was rugged in a way that only Tom Riddle could ever pull off.

Yes, Hermione Granger is loath to admit that Tom Marvolo Riddle, Jr. is still sexy as hell. So when Tom inched his face closer, and his eyes trained on her lips, Hermione closed her eyes.

Then the elevator started moving again. Tom chuckled.

"See you around, Granger." And just like that Tom Riddle left a bewildered Hermione Granger alone with her own thoughts.

When she finally collected herself, she walked out of the lifts thinking this must be how he felt back then.

"Touché, Riddle. Touché."

**_—-_**

**A/N**: Hi! This is my comeback story of sorts. I've written fanfiction years before — about a decade now actually — but under a different category and genre. So I'm a little bit rusty. Please bear with me for now.

I am yet to decide whether to turn this into a multi-chapter fic or just leave this as it is. I guess it will depend on the feedback and also my disposition to write. But do share your thoughts if I should continue with this story or not. Thank you :)


	2. That Night

"Oi, Granger. I heard you got stuck in the lift yesterday. Don't you just have the worst of luck?"

There are only two things Hermione Granger finds really annoying in this world: one is a runny nose, and two would be the blond loud-mouthed man that is smirking at her right now - Draco Malfoy.

"Ha-ha. Malfoy. Very funny." Hermione rolled her eyes at Draco, but internally her mind was racing. Has word gone out that she was trapped in the lift with Tom yesterday?

"Did you cry while you were inside? Were you scared you were gonna be stuck there forever?" Draco's eyes were glinting with mirth at the thought of headstrong Hermione Granger crying over being stuck in the lift.

Hermione's mind was racing at the thought of everyone knowing about her and Tom's little mishap yesterday, but her face showed no signs of distress — only annoyance at the smirking blonde in front of her. She wondered what people were saying about it. Did someone see how Tom caged her yesterday? Did they see how she melted in front of him soon after lashing out at him? What if they also caught wind of what happened between them months ago? What if —

Her train of thought was cut off by the sudden realization of what Draco asked her.

"What did you say?" Draco, not looking any less amused from when he first approached her, was all too happy repeating his teasing. "I said," he leaned towards her even more, his elbows pressing on her desk, "did you cry while you were stuck in the lift? All in your lonesome, with no one to assure you that things would be alright?" Hermione's eyebrows furrowed, and Draco laughed boisterously. Then, wiping the non-existent tears in his eyes, he lightly pressed his knuckles on Hermione's right cheek and said, "I'm just teasing you, Granger. I'm sure your level-headed self was able to calmly get out of there. Heard you weren't trapped inside for long after all."

Hermione, not being able to say anything during the whole exchange, just stared at Draco with an unreadable expression until finally, the latter, deciding that that was enough teasing the bushy haired brunette for today, left for his own seat.

They thought she was alone yesterday. But why? And how did they even hear of what happened — or rather, how did they know about her getting stuck in the lift but not knowing that Tom was with her? Before she could pursue possible theories, however, her professor entered the room and began their session. Hermione being the swot that she was, dropped all non-academic-related thoughts and focused on her studies alone, tucking them inside the recesses of her mind to be entertained again later.

* * *

"So let me get this straight,"

Harry Potter and Hermione were sitting cross-legged by the field in their campus. Their classes were done for the day and the two best friends decided to share snacks and stories before going to their respective apartments after Harry caught wind of Hermione's little predicament yesterday.

It has been quite a while since the two of them were able to catch up since they had both been busy with their courses. But Harry didn't realize just how long they didn't talk until Hermione dropped a bomb on him.

"The thing about you getting stuck on the lift yesterday left out the very important fact that you were stuck with Tom Marvolo Riddle." Harry prodded, and Hermione nodded while harshly grabbing on the grass at her fingertips. "_The_ Tom Riddle who you had a _massive_ crush on last year? Who you had somewhat drunkenly confessed to during your class' party at the beginning of the term, and the one you almost had se—"

Before Harry could go on any further, Hermione gasped and threw the grass she had been mercilessly pulling out at Harry. "Harry!" With her face flushed, Hermione kept on throwing grass at Harry until Harry brought both arms in surrender and said his sorry, but not without laughing, for being too loud.

"Alright, alright. I'll shut up!" Harry offered his unopened pack of walnuts as peace offering, and grinned sheepishly at Hermione. With a huff, Hermione accepted the snack but soon found herself giggling at how childish they might have looked to the people passing by.

After a while, Harry looked at Hermione again, and with a serious look, said, "How are you though? The last time we talked about _that_ you were dead set on pretending like nothing happened. And for a while I think you were actually able to pull it off. You don't have classes together anymore, right? And what is the deal with you and Malfoy? I've been hearing whispers that you two have gotten pretty chummy this term." Hermione sighed. Then groaned. She loved Harry with all her heart and she was thankful that she had someone she could always run to whenever something's bothering her, but sometimes he's really too much of a busybody when it comes to her.

Harry didn't prod any further, knowing that Hermione needed time to compose herself before answering his loaded questions. This is why they've been best friends for a decade already. Only Harry knew how to communicate with Hermione effectively.

After a while, Hermione finally responded.

"I don't know, Harry." She sighed again, and started fiddling with her hands, a habit she formed throughout her years in college.

"For a while, I really did forget about him and about _that_. I haven't really seen him around much, and when we do cross paths, I don't get nervous or shy anymore unlike the first few times I saw him after th-_that_." She's starting to get annoyed at always having to refer to _that _night as _that_, but she couldn't really describe it in any other way. "But then yesterday I saw him and he _looked so different_ that I couldn't help but wonder about him, you know?" She looked at Harry, trying to see if he knew what she meant. Harry just stared back at her, silently beckoning her to continue.

"I started to think about the last time I saw him and realized I hadn't really been in his presence for longer than a minute. I realized that the last time I was close to him was when he was talking to Fleur at our joint class last term, and I had to be in the middle of them because my seat was sandwiched between them." She covered her face with her hands, and shrieked. "Ugh. I just remembered how embarrassing that moment was! I walked into the classroom, saw him and Fleur talking — Fleur in her seat, and him sitting on the chair next to mine." Hermione shook her head out of embarrassment just from recounting the incident.

"I froze thrice, Harry! First was by the door when I saw them. Second was by the aisle of our seat. And third was when I awkwardly took my seat between them while they were still talking!" She removed her hands from her face, and shook Harry by the shoulders, "do you know how annoyed I was at myself for putting myself in that situation? It was so awkward, I left after a minute of just awkwardly sitting in between them, saying I had to get water." She let go of poor Harry, and went back to fiddling with her hands. "When I was finally out of there, I realized I could have sat somewhere else first while they were still talking. I realized a lot of things I could have done instead of that embarrassing thing I did. I'm sure he noticed how flustered I was. I was so annoyed at myself for letting him see how much _that night_ affected me." She finally looked up and stared at the field with a determined look. "After that, I gathered my bearings and decided I wouldn't get so flustered anymore." She smiled. "When I went back to the room, he was on his way out, and we casually greeted each other. From then on every time we would pass by each other at the hallways he would greet me or initiate small talk. We were casual. I never became flustered again." She paused, then furrowed her eyebrows. "But apart from yesterday, I really haven't seen him around for months now."

Harry was silent all throughout Hermione's little monologue. It wasn't the first time he heard that story. She had told him almost the exact same thing soon after that happened, but she allowed her to repeat everything just because he thought she needed to let all that pent up frustration out. When it seemed like she had nothing more to say though, Harry gently asked, "And what about Malfoy?" Hermione looked at him quizzically, and asked, "What about him?" Sensing that it was alright to tease Hermione now, Harry grinned and said, "Oh I heard that he's been following you around like a lost puppy since this term started. Always trying to grab your attention by teasing you or fighting with you like a school boy hitting on his crush." Harry laughed when he saw the disbelief in Hermione's face.

"What rubbish are you on about now, Potter?" Hermione smacked Harry on his left arm, and the latter laughed even louder. "Where have you heard this? 'School boy hitting on his crush', my arse. He's nothing but a prat bent on annoying me everyday!" Hermione just kept on hitting Harry who wouldn't stop laughing. They bickered on and on until they finally decided it was time for them to head home and resume their student life.

Hermione stood up and gave Harry a hug when the latter also got up from his sitting position. "Thanks, Harry. I know you just wanted to lighten up the mood after I went all hysterical on you." Harry hugged his best friend back, and teased, "You mean, went 'Hermione' on me?" That earned him a hit on the back and they both laughed before letting each other go.

They bade their goodbyes and went on their separate ways. Harry lived in an on-campus dorm so he only needed to walk. Hermione, on the other hand, headed back to her building to get on the lift that would take her to the parking basement.

Unbeknownst to her, just a couple of meters away from where the two best friends hung out, was a dark figure reading a book while sitting on one of the benches near the field.

When they left, he started walking towards the direction of the College of Arts building, too.

* * *

**A/N: **Hi there! Yes, it's been months since I posted the first chapter of this story. I was dead set on making this a multi-chapter fic already but because of school, I had to put this off. Covid has also hit our country bad and I had to move back to my hometown and take my classes and exams online. I am practically done with this semester though so I've decided to spend some time on writing this now. I hope you guys liked this chapter. All the chapters will seem short since I write by feel. And sometimes I would just have this nagging feeling telling me, "you should end it here for now." And that's what I do. Anyway, I will try to update regularly since I writing this is sort of therapeutic for me also. I would love to hear your thoughts, comments, and questions, so please feel free to review! (But also please be kind. These are hard times nowadays. The least we can do is be kind to one another.)


	3. The Lift

When Hermione was eleven years old she got into a bicycle accident that led to her being unable to move her right arm for a month. Ever since then, she has avoided riding bicycles in fear of repeating her misfortune. With the same logic, she avoided revolving doors and spiral staircases. Watermelons and coconut trees. Each and every accident she had would give rise to a new phobia that would make her avoid ever having any contact with the thing that has caused her accident. She was vigilant in this sense, and yet, despite what happened to her yesterday, Hermione calmly and unthinkingly entered the exact same lift that suddenly stopped and trapped her and Tom for a good couple of minutes yesterday.

The doors were about to close when someone suddenly held out his hand to stop it. Hermione looked up and froze when the newcomer came into view.

"Granger." Tom smirked as he made his way next to Hermione.

Hermione almost didn't respond, too shocked to see Tom too soon. She hasn't seen him in months, and now all of a sudden he's everywhere? Tom cleared his throat as he pressed on the button closing the lift, and Hermione finally replied. "Riddle." She tilted her head to his direction and nodded before continuing,"funny how we always find ourselves meeting in the lift." She tried to act casual again. She was able to do it before, what makes things different now? She looked at him to give him a small smile then realized what made things different when she saw his face again. _Right. He looked different. _

_What happened to him?_

Tom returned her smile. Sort of. He had a special way of smiling that made you doubt if he was really smiling at you or just insulting you in his mind. Hermione still couldn't tell but she'd learned to just take every gesture of Tom with a grain of salt.

"I'm honestly quite surprised you took this lift again, Granger." His eyes were smoldering as he replied to her lighthearted comment without breaking eye contact with her. Hermione could feel herself blushing. "Aren't you afraid this lift's going to malfunction and trap us again?" His tone was teasing but Hermione could sense a hint of something else in the way he said that. But she ignored it.

Hermione finally looked away from Tom, feeling lightheaded, and said, "Don't be ridiculous, Tom. The probability of this lift malfunctioning again just a day after it broke down when for sure it had been fixed by the maintenance team after it malfunctioned, _and_ trapping the two of us together, is really low. That would be too much of a coincidence."

And as if on cue the lift stopped.

Something suddenly clicked in Hermione's mind and she glared at Tom.

"Riddle." Tom looked at her innocently with a brow raised.

"Yes, Granger?" Hermione literally growled.

"I don't know how you did it. And I don't know what you're up to. But this is too much! Make the lift move again or I swear to God I'll —" Tom chuckled and all of a sudden, Hermione found herself in the exact same position she was in before the lift started moving again yesterday. Tom was close, so close that she could feel his breath against her ear as he spoke.

"Whatever do you mean, Granger?" Tom _purred, _and Hermione could do nothing but shiver at the velvety sound of his voice. Her legs suddenly felt like jelly and all the rage she felt a wile ago dissipated into nothingness just like that. Tom bent even closer towards her right ear, and let out a low chuckle. "Do you fancy me a wizard, Granger? How could I possibly just make the lift stop and go as I please without magic?" Tom's voice was low but it was clear. Hermione still couldn't hear anything though because the pounding of her heart was too loud, her mind too blank. Hermione was starting to feel hot, and Tom could sense this.

Tom straightened his back, giving Hermione more space to breathe.

Just when Hermione's head finally started to clear, and awareness started to dawn on her, though Tom asked: "Cat got your tongue, Granger?" And before she could respond, Tom grabbed the back of her head and proceeded to give her the most intense kiss she has had in months.

Too surprised at the turn of events, Hermione was initially unmoving. But when she realized that Tom really was kissing her again for the first time since _that night_, she shoved at him, and stubbornly kept her mouth closed. But Tom was relentless. He grabbed her wrists, pinning them above her head with one hand, while his other hand was still holding the back of her head, caressing her scalp soothingly, as if to coax her into kissing him back.

He was winning and she hated it. But she also loved the feeling of his soft lips on hers, and his hard body pressed against hers — making her feel delicate and small. Finally, she, opened her mouth slightly to tentatively respond to his kisses. Tom grabbed this opportunity to suck on the bottom of her lip teasingly before running his tongue on it. Hermione moaned, then started to kiss Tom in earnest. Their tongues battled, and Tom let Hermione's wrists go to hold her even closer to him.

Hermione wrapped her arms around Tom's neck, and she could feel a slight bulge hitting her center oh so deliciously as they continued to kiss each other like they were dying of thirst. Tom started to lift Hermione so she could wrap her legs around his hips, but then they were jolted.

The lift started moving again. And as if getting hit with a bucket of ice cold water, Hermione stopped clinging on to Tom and pushed him hard. Tom laughed when he saw Hermione's disheveled state and blushing face. She was glaring daggers at him and he couldn't help but laugh harder before straightening himself and leaving the lift, but not before saying, "Guess I was the one who got your tongue, eh Granger?"

Hermione threw her bag at his direction but it only landed on the closing door.

* * *

Hermione was seething when she arrived at her apartment. She slammed the door close and threw her bag on the floor before angrily punching on her phone to call Harry.

Hermione rarely called Harry, being aware that they were both busy with their own lives. Their friendship was so strong that they didn't have to always talk to each other or be together to make sure that they were still the best of friends. So whenever Hermione called Harry, or vice versa, the receiver would always answer under any circumstances.

Harry picked up on the second ring.

"Hey, did you miss me alre—" Harry didn't even get to finish his greeting before Hermione started her ranting fest about what happened just a while ago between her and Tom.

When she finished, the line was eerily quiet. Harry loved to tease Hermione, but he knew when to push her buttons and when to hold back on the teasing. This moment certainly called for the latter. So he gathered his thoughts before answering, "Wow. That's... that's a lot to take in." He gathered his thoughts but it didn't mean he could be helpful.

Hermione groaned and whined, "Harrrrrrry." Harry smiled a little upon hearing the Hermione who used to complain to him about every little thing when they were little. "What do I do? I feel so stupid for allowing him to be all over me like that." She continued in her whiny voice. "And in the lift for Pete's sake!" He could vividly picture her pacing in her apartment, flailing her hand around as she spoke. "It's a good thing there aren't any security cameras in the lifts in our building, but it's still embarrassing to think we were all over each other in school of all places!" Harry couldn't help but tease her on this part, and so he said, "oh so if it was in a car parked in front of your neighbor's house, it would be okay then?" He was sure that if they were together in person, Hermione would smack him to death. "How dare you tease me about this, Harry James Potter! Ugh! I never should have told you anything!" Hermione was poised to angrily end the call, but Harry hurriedly assuaged her. "Hey, hey, hey, wait! Sorry! I'll stop teasing. The opportunity was just too golden, 'Mione. Do forgive this old chap just this once." Hermione huffed. "Fine. But one more teasing word out of you and our friendship is over." Harry highly doubted that but he didn't say anything to further enrage the already mad woman.

After a while, Harry finally said, "Hermione, you do know what this means, right?" Hermione furrowed her brows in confusion. Not knowing what Harry was getting at. "No. What does what mean?"

"You and Tom." Harry replied.

"What about me and Tom?"

"Once while drunk can pass off as a mistake. But the second one while sober? I say he likes you."

Hermione blinked about six times after hearing what Harry said. _Tom Marvolo Riddle... likes... me? _

She laughed. Hard. So hard that Harry was beginning to question her sanity.

"Harry don't be ridiculous. There is no way Tom would like me. If anything, I think he's scheming something. Maybe he's playing a game. I don't know what he's up to really, but I just know it's something else." Hermione laughed a little again, before saying, "Hah! Tom liking me. What a funny joke, Harry. Thanks for making me laugh. Now I feel a lot better." Harry just shook his head on the other line, knowing that nothing he says will go through his best friend's head.

After a few more exchanges, Hermione ended the call and took a shower. She then laid down her books and prepared her notepad to make herself a reviewer for tomorrow's lectures. When she finally found herself in her bed, however, one question flooded her mind.

_Could Tom Riddle actually like me?_

* * *

When Hermione went to school the next day, she was anticipating Draco harping on her again about being trapped in the elevator twice in a row that week. But to her surprise, apart from his usual teasing jabs and comments, he didn't mention anything about her, or lifts, or anything about getting stuck. This made her curious once more about how word got out about her first lift entrapment experience in the first place. Upon entry of the professor, however, she once again emptied her mind of all distractions and focused on the lecture alone.

Two weeks then passed without issue. Hermione had not seen Tom again after their 'little elevator tryst' as Harry would teasingly call it, and Hermione was beginning to think that she had just imagined what happened. But the mundanity of her days worked in Hermione's favor since exams were happening in a few days and Hermione had to channel all her focus on that.

So she spent all her days making notes and reviewers for her exams. Most of the time she was tucked in a hidden corner in the library, buried in her books and notes. Other times, she would be found in the quaint little cafe near her university, coffee cup on the side as she reads through the reviewers she finished, committing them to memory. Nobody dared to bother her during the days leading up to the exams week, and during the week of the exams itself, knowing full well her wrath once disturbed.

A week after the exams, however, Hermione found herself looking at Draco in disbelief.

The result of the exams have been posted, showing the ranks of each student per course. For the first time in three years, six terms, and twelve exams, Hermione Granger's name was not on the top of the list. In her usual spot was Draco Malfoy's name adjacent to a little box showing his total score that was higher by Hermione's by a margin of 0.5 points.

"How is this even possible?!" Hermione screeched and Draco just guffawed and looked at Hermione with unrestrained triumph in his eyes.

"Don't be a sore loser, Granger. A deal's a deal. Don't tell me you're going to back out now?" Draco was all too giddy. After years of trying to best her in exams, he finally won and could now make him do anything he wanted.

Draco's obsession on trying to beat Hermione in exams started when he heard his entrance exam results for their course was only the second highest. Draco had always been the best at everything he did. He was born into an old rich family, thus they had money, power and the reputation. Everything was handed to him in a silver platter but because he was also quite competitive and proud in nature, he always made sure to excel in everything he did. And excel he did.

But come college, he found himself getting second place for the first time in his entire life. He demanded a re-checking of the entrance exams, but the result came up the same and the margin between his score and the one with the highest mark was too great to even bargain for extra points. It was a hard blow for the proud Draco Malfoy but he shortly took everything into stride and thought that maybe it was just a matter of luck. He chose to look at it as the Universe trying to tell him that he shouldn't stop improving himself if he doesn't want to be bested by others. So he worked harder. But in every exam he would still find his name below the very same girl who beat him in the entrance exams. Beating the faceless Hermione Granger then became his greatest motivation every exam. But time and time again, he would see his name in the exact same place in the rankings list.

Draco never wondered about what Hermione looked like. He always assumed that she looked like the average nerd. He could only fathom a studious bespectacled person who had no social life or extra-curricular activities. But then on his third year, their classes got re-shuffled and he found himself in the same class as Hermione Granger.

To say that she looked nowhere near how he imagined her to look was an understatement. When he first saw her, he actually gawked at her. He has never seen anyone as golden as she was. Her bronze skin fascinated him. Her wild and curly hair beckoned to him to caress them. And her freckles awakened such a deep longing within him, he visibly shivered. Draco was not by any means a romantic, but the very moment he laid his eyes on Hermione Granger, he was sure he fell in love at first sight.

But Draco was proud and competitive and he had never fancied anyone, so when he approached her, instead of expressing his admiration or offering his friendship, Draco said, "So you're Hermione Granger, eh? Wanna bet on who's gonna rank first in the exams this term?" No 'Hi' or 'Hello' was uttered, and the straightforwardness and arrogance of Draco must have been the reason why Hermione played along and mirrored his confidence, saying, "it wouldn't be much of a bet if there's a clear winner already though." And that was the start of the bet between the two.

Draco lost in the first three exams, and now, by some miracle he actually won.

"Okay, what do you want?"

Draco grinned.

"Come to the end-of-term party." _With me_, he wanted to add, but he didn't want to scare her off.

* * *

**A/N: **I may end up updating almost everyday because I quite enjoy writing this. Hope you guys liked this! I might reveal _that night_ in the next chapter already. Please do leave a review if you enjoyed this. Stay safe and healthy, everyone! 


	4. The Party

"No."

Draco frowned. He knew Hermione wouldn't like what he asked for but he didn't expect her to shoot him down instantly and so resolutely.

"C'mon, Granger. You've never gone to our parties. Don't be so genteel and loosen up a little!" At this point, Draco was already invading her personal space, holding on to her hands and swinging them side by side with every word uttered. Hermione always felt like she was dealing with a child whenever Draco would try to persuade her like this. She rolled her eyes at Draco and replied, "Insulting me won't make me want to go, Malfoy." She removed her hands from his grasp, and crossed her arms across her chest. "Besides, I've gone to the parties before. I just stopped going because I don't see the point in going anymore." The last part was a lie but Draco didn't have to know that.

Hermione actually liked going to the parties her college would hold at the beginning and end of the term. Those were the only times she felt it was okay to let go and have fun - be a giggly, barely coherent mess due to alcohol and an influx of serotonin from talking to people she was usually too shy to talk to when sober. She gained quite a reputation for being surprisingly fun to be around with during those parties, hence, she would always receive invites as early as a week before the final exams. She would go without fail of course - up until her third year at least.

When the College of Arts held its start-of-term party on Hermione's third year, people were surprised to find the firecracker that was a tipsy Hermione Granger was nowhere in sight. People thought maybe there was just a clash in her schedule or a personal emergency that prevented her from going. But the two parties after that still had no Hermione Granger in them. Soon enough, they accepted that Hermione didn't want to go to the parties anymore, and fun tipsy Hermione became a thing of the past.

"I always thought you didn't go because you didn't like them. But it turns out you have gone to the parties before. Now I really don't see why you shouldn't go." Draco momentarily paused, wondering to himself why he never noticed her at the parties. But then again, he didn't really know what she looked like before and he didn't hang around the girls much during the parties so he guessed it made sense. He looked at Hermione again, and said, "I didn't want to force you if it was causing you anxiety or something." To this, Hermione looked at Draco in shock. She did not expect Draco, prat that he is, to be so considerate as to matters like that. She had to give the guy more credit, she thought. "But since you just didn't see the point in going, well, here's the point: I finally beat you this time and what I want you to do is loosen up at the party." Hermione looked at Draco strangely, not seeing how this could be a punishment. Sensing where her thoughts were going, Draco hurriedly added, "I mean, how satisfying would it be to see you being less than your usually impeccable self, right? I want others to see Hermione Granger getting drunk because she didn't get the top mark in the final exams." He smirked to solidify his teasing proposition. Hermione glared at him.

"You're so childish, Malfoy."

Draco grinned. He knew Hermione enough to know that the deal was sealed.

* * *

_Cheers erupted as the beer pong ball made a resounding plop into the last red cup still standing._

_"Damn, Tom! You're on fire! That's three wins in a row already!" _

_More whoops and cheers erupted as a group of people surrounded Tom in celebration of his third win that night. _

_The end-of-term party of the College of Arts was in full swing and every corner of the venue they rented out was filled with people doing their own versions of fun. The very few people who didn't drink alcohol were all huddled together in front of the projector showing a horror film, each blissfully unmindful of the ruckus going around them. Others were seated around a long table, playing various drinking games ranging from 'Truth or Dare' to 'Never Have I Ever,' some were dancing to the music booming at a far corner, a number of pairs could also be found in various spots making out, while the rest just drank and talked with whoever was with them. _

_Within this seemingly chaotic set up, was a tipsy Hermione laughing at what Theodore Nott said. She found herself feeling extremely light and euphoric after chugging down a whole bottle of beer in competition with four other people. She won, of course, never one to back down. Chugging that beer after she has been taking sips on her cocktail all through the night (the party has been going on for about 2 hours now), and after taking about two shots of tequila, finally made her enter that state she'd like to refer to as her personal 'Nirvana.' When like this, nothing could bring her down. She pretty much felt invincible, and anyone who would talk to this Hermione would find him or herself enjoying her company thoroughly. _

_More cheers erupted from the corner where people were playing beer pong, and the people started chanting Tom's name in earnest. Hermione looked to their direction - partly out of curiosity as to the commotion, but mostly because they were chanting Tom's name. _

_They haven't interacted at all tonight. Hermione briefly remembered the start-of-term party they had in the middle of the year where she had made the drunken confession to a bunch of people she wasn't close to that she was quite attracted to Tom Riddle with whom she shared some classes with. Tom Riddle was actually part of the group she had unwittingly confessed to, but at that time she could only laugh and assert that it was just a little crush. He was nice and quite handsome, so Hermione said it wasn't that big of a deal. Everyone in the group, apart from Tom, agreed with her that it wasn't a big deal since everybody did like Tom in one way or another. So they let it go, somewhat disappointed that Hermione didn't have a juicier secret crush._

_The following day though, Hermione realized what she had done, and worked on letting everyone forget her little confession. She didn't let her little crush on Tom show and had actually gotten over it after a while. That didn't stop Tom's friends from teasing her about it still though. Every chance they get, they would match her and Tom up. And tonight wasn't any different. _

_As was her practice, she didn't bring her car to the party since she knew she would be in no state to drive herself once it's done. She would usually ask Harry to drop her off and bring her home, but tonight Harry was out of town with Ginny to make up for the weeks they couldn't talk because of Harry's exams and Ginny's internship. She was planning on taking the cab both to and from the party, but Tom's friends heard of her predicament and they insisted on her going with them in Tom's car. She was still too sober to deal with a bunch of persuasive men to say no, so she reluctantly agreed, deciding to just take a cab on her way home. _

_Accepting their invite turned out to be a good idea in the end. Not only was she able to save some pounds by not taking the cab, nothing really interesting happened during the car ride to the party either. The boys mostly didn't mind her, and when they entered the venue, they all went their separate ways. _

_Now, Hermione who was more than tipsy but less than full-blown drunk, excused herself from the people around her and confidently walked towards the direction of the loud crowd. She broke through the crowd until she was at the center and standing face to face with Tom. _

_"Care for a challenge?" Hermione confidently looked Tom in the eye, and the latter just smirked._

* * *

Hermione shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts of _that night_ just when Harry pulled over to park near the venue of her college's party. Harry looked at her warily, "Are you sure you're doing this? He asked. Hermione gulped, faced Harry, and with the most shaky smile, said, "A bet's a bet. Malfoy would probably talk my ear off if I were suddenly to chicken out." She laughed to lighten the tension but it just came out forced. She then sighed.

Harry unbuckled his seat belt and gave Hermione a tentative yet soothing hug. It was quite a struggle though since Hermione was still buckled in.

"If you find yourself in the same situation as last time, or even if not in that exact same situation but in whatever situation you're not comfortable with, just give me a call, okay? My phone will be on me the whole time. I'll be here as soon as I can."

Harry had always felt guilty for leaving Hermione alone that night, even though Hermione insisted he shouldn't. He always thought that if he had been able to drive Hermione back then, she wouldn't be in this terrible situation with Tom seemingly playing with her. He knew that Hermione was trying her best to make it seem like she wasn't bothered by what happened and what Tom had done to her both during that night and during the lift encounters. But he knew, at the back of her mind, doubts and insecurities weighed her down.

Hermione moved to remove her seat belt, and Harry let her go but remained in his position. Hermione then shook her head at Harry, and smiled, a real one this time. "I'll be fine, Harry." Harry didn't look convinced so Hermione raised her right hand, as if to swear allegiance to the flag, and said, "I promise I won't drink much so that I won't do anything stupid. And I'll only stay for an hour or so. Draco did say I only needed to come to the party, he didn't say anything about staying till the end." Hermione uncharacteristically smirked at this, and Harry found himself laughing at Hermione's cleverness. "Also, I'll keep my eye out on Tom and steer clear of him. I was able to avoid him for most of the year - save for those two lift encounters - I'm pretty sure I can avoid him in a crowded and loud party." Hermione then put her hand down and shrugged. "Besides, who's to say he'd even be here?" They both knew she was being too optimistic for thinking Tom wouldn't be at the party, but one could only hope.

Without further ado, Hermione stepped out of Harry's car and gave him one last reassuring smile. "Don't worry too much about me, Harry. Ginny's my friend and all, too, but I'm sure even our friendship won't make her any less annoyed if she finds out you were worrying about me when the two of you are on a date." She teased, knowing full well that Ginny would never get jealous of her and Harry's friendship. Harry knew this, too, but he still mock glared at Hermione. "Fine, fine. Have fun then, kid. I'm off!" After a wave, and upon seeing Hermione enter the venue, Harry drove out of the driveway and made his way to Ginny's place.

* * *

Hermione arrived half an hour after the designated start of the party. She didn't want to arrive earlier for fear of catching the attention of all those she used to party with, but she didn't want to arrive when the party was in full swing already either because that would make spotting Draco near impossible. After inspecting the venue, she smiled in satisfaction upon the realization that she made the right choice in choosing to come only now because while there were a lot of people already, the atmosphere was still relatively calm and it was easy to scan the crowds.

The first thing she noticed was that Tom wasn't there. The second thing was Draco constantly looking up to watch the entrance every other minute or so. She laughed a little at the sight of Draco looking like a meerkat before walking towards his direction. The clicking of her heels made Draco look to her direction, and she found herself looking at an all too gleeful Draco Malfoy hurriedly standing up to greet her.

"You actually came!" He shouted, and Hermione couldn't help but laugh and roll her eyes at him. _Why was he so excited?_ She wondered.

"I did lose, Malfoy. I'm gracious enough to accept my defeat and the terms that come with it." She calmly said, a great contrast to his overly excited disposition. Malfoy steeled himself then led her to where he was sitting a while ago. He introduced her to his friends, one of which she already knew.

"Hey, Hermione! Nice to finally see you again!" Theo stood to give Hermione a hug, and Draco stood there dumbfounded.

"You two know each other?" Draco asked.

Theo and Hermione paused their catch up session and looked at Draco as if suddenly remembering he was there. Theo then replied to Draco, "Oh, yeah, I met her during the end-of term party during the second term of our second year. Now it makes sense why you've been smit -" Draco put Theo in a headlock and messed his hair while laughing and saying, "Haha, _Theo_." He placed too much emphasis on Theo's name to sound friendly. "Why didn't you tell me you knew Hermione, you silly boy?" Draco ruffled his hair once more then let him go. Theo looked sheepish as he scratched the back of his head and looked at Draco amusedly.

"You never said you were talking about Hermione Granger. How should I know I knew the person you were cr -" And again Theo was cut off when he noticed the death glare Draco gave him. He laughed, now done teasing his friend. "Anyway," Theo then turned to Hermione who was also amused with what she witnessed, "it's really great to see you again, Hermione. We quite missed you in the last parties. It's not as fun without you." Hermione rolled her eyes at that, knowing Theo was just saying that, but she did appreciate the gesture. "Thanks, Theo. It's nice to see you again, too."

Draco handed her a can of beer and engaged her in conversation.

Draco's circle was quite nice. Blaise Zabini had a mysterious yet imposing aura to him that made Hermione think of a lion waiting in the shadows to trap its prey. She was a predator herself though so she did not feel threatened by him. Daphne Greengrass was also good company. She usually doesn't get along well with girls since she's not into fashion and make up, and was a bit too rough around the edges for most girls. But Daphne, while being every bit of a lady, was also not afraid to laugh loudly when something funny has been said or contribute enthusiastically to a conversation involving less than delicate topics. Overall, she was having fun. She didn't even notice that she was past the one-hour-mark she set as her own deadline, nor that she had drank four cans of beer already.

At that point, the venue was now filled with music, laughter, and cheers. It was starting to get chaotic and Hermione couldn't help thinking that she missed the chaos of these parties.

She was leaning on Draco while laughing particularly hard at an embarrassing moment Theo shared to them when she suddenly froze.

Across the room, staring daggers at her was Tom Riddle looking immaculate once again with a clean-shaven face and pressed clothes that fit him so well, her insides clenched.

* * *

**A/N: **Yes, yes. There are more Draco/Hermione moments than Tom/Hermione ones, but please be patient. This will change in due time. While I'm both a Dramione and Tomione shipper (I actually ship Hermione with everyone BUT Ron), my particular fondness for the Tomione pairing is the wickedness and scheming that's involved in their encounters. Hence, you're going to see only bits and pieces of Tomione for now in these short chapters. *wink*

Hope you all liked this chapter. Thank you for reading! See you all again in the next update!


	5. Tease

_A circle of boys and girls carrying red cups all held their breaths as the white ball flew out of the hand of Hermione Granger. The table had only one cup standing on either side - one was perched near the corner of the left side of the table, the other was standing proudly near the center of the original set up. _

_Hermione was the first to take a shot after having won in the coin toss, and she was able to take down three cups from Tom's side before hitting a miss after the beat of the music blaring on the background suddenly dropped and shook her out of her concentration. With a grimace, Hermione gestured for Tom to take his turn. After three straight games, one would think Tom Riddle would look at least a little bit flushed from the alcohol, but no. He looked as impeccable as ever. The only outward sign of his alcohol intake is the seemingly perpetual smirk on his face as he watched his opponent's every move. _

_Tom poised to take his shots and he easily took down four of Hermione's ten cups. On his fifth shot, a bystander toppled over after having too much to drink, causing Tom to miss his target by a breath. Hermione offered to make him redo the shot because of the intervention, but Tom graciously rejected her offer and told her to take her turn instead. He said there'd be no excuses. Once a shot has been taken, it's counted as a turn. Hermione then agreed, not thinking anything of the rule. _

_This is when the game started to take a turn._

_After successfully taking down two cups, Hermione again suddenly lost her concentration. This time though, the music remained steady and no bystander came close. What broke her concentration was Tom's bobbing Adam's apple as he drank his beer slowly, stretching his neck in the process. A droplet of the liquid rolled down the corner of his lips and then to his neck. _

_She wanted nothing more than to lick that droplet out of his neck. _

_She gasped at that thought and accidentally threw the ball without aiming anywhere. The ball landed lamely on the ground, missing the table entirely. She flushed, and Tom's smirk grew even more pronounced. '__He did that on purpose!' Hermione angrily thought. _

_'Alright, two can play this game.' _

_Determined, Hermione started fanning her face with her hands. She then assumed the most sultry expression she could make, and slowly raised her hands to gather her hair in a bun. Her top rode up a little, showing a little strip of flesh of her toned stomach and this did not go unnoticed by Tom. His eyes flickered to her exposed skin, and his eyes darkened. He took the shot and it was not as fluid as his earlier shots but the ball still landed inside the cup. Hermione frowned, but only for a millisecond. She had to up her game if she didn't want to lose. _

_As Tom received another ball for his shot, Hermione then proceeded to take off the cardigan she was wearing, claiming that it was getting too hot in the room. What greeted Tom was the vision of Hermione Granger in a white ribbed knit cropped tank top showing generous amounts of skin. He has never seen Hermione in that state of dress (or undress rather) in the two years he has known her. She always donned on cardigans and hoodies or loose shirts. Who knew she was wearing something like that under her unassuming clothes? And that body. Wow. All Tom could do was clench his teeth as he tried to look unaffected by Hermione's brave little display of her assets. _

_The crowd didn't have the same disposition though. _

_When Hermione unbuttoned and removed her cardigan, there were wolf whistles from the male population (and even some girls) of the crowd watching them. Like Tom, this was the first time they had seen Hermione look like that. One even shouted, "Damn, Granger! You're hot!" And Hermione giggled, feeling extremely powerful for being able to affect the people around her like that just from removing her cardigan. She usually doesn't like being noticed for anything other than her intelligence and own capabilities, but sometimes - like tonight - it's also nice to know that she could also wow the people with her good enough female charms. _

_But it may also be because she has consumed more alcohol than she usually does._

_Tom was annoyed, and Hermione saw the microscopic twitch of Tom's eye when one of the bystanders shouted she was hot. Hermione looked at Tom and waited for him to look back at her. When his eyes caught hers for a moment, she wasted no time in giving him a wink. Tom dropped the ball, surprised that Hermione abandoned all forms of subtlety and moved in for the kill. He hurriedly schooled his expression of disbelief and outwardly collected himself, but inside he was cursing her. 'You little minx. You really don't back down do you?'_

_And so what should have been a normal game of beer pong between two students of the same college became a tense game of who can push the other to the edge as to break their concentration. Each party's move got bolder and bolder as the game progressed, and the crowd around them dwindled as more people got too drunk to stay standing. Had the people around them been less inebriated, they could have noticed just how hot and heavy the air between Tom and Hermione had become. Both of them were set on winning the game as a matter of pride, but there was also the underlying need to conquer the other person entirely. It was both a game of wills and seduction. A dangerous game to play indeed but they still played anyway._

_The ball finally landed inside the cup. The crowd cheered and Hermione blew Tom a kiss with a teasing glint in her eye. _

_Tom was furious but he didn't let it show. Instead, he approached Hermione and shook her hand for a good game. _

_"I think you've had enough to drink. How about I take you home?" _

_He smiled that unusual smile of his, and Hermione was too high on her win to say no._

* * *

Hermione found herself being brought back to the present when Draco lightly shook her by the shoulder.

"Yo, Granger. What's up? What are you looking at?" Draco looked to where Hermione's eyes were trained, but saw nothing but a group of people talking animatedly with each other with drinks in their hands.

"Are they people you know?" Draco prodded Hermione again.

As if snapping out of a reverie, Hermione realized Tom was nowhere in sight. Did she only imagine seeing him?

She turned to Draco and let out a nervous laugh. "I think I've drank quite a lot already. I feel a little tipsy. I'm not used to drinking anymore. I'll just go freshen myself up for a bit." Draco was about to accompany her but she stopped him, saying she was fine on her own. She jokingly added he was creeping her out for being too attentive. She said she wasn't used to this kind of Draco. That stopped Draco from insisting he accompany her, and even added a teasing remark for good measure just so she would stop being creeped out. He knew she was joking but he feared there might be some truth in it too.

Hermione stood and looked for the loo. There were more people now, and it was harder to navigate through the crowds. As she was passing by a corridor, outside of the main function room, she was suddenly pulled into someone's chest. She was about to shout and punch whoever it was that grabbed her when she saw who it was.

"Granger."

"Riddle."

They stared each other down. And then Tom smirked. This made Hermione realize the position they were in, and she hurriedly pushed him away. She then proceeded to stand on the other side of the corridor, glaring at Tom.

"Stop backing me up against walls and cornering me! I could sue you for harassment, you know?"

Tom chuckled, and looked at Hermione challengingly. "I'd like to see you try."

Tom started approaching her slowly. Hermione froze. She should run away now. If she doesn't, she's sure she's going to find herself in the exact same situation as before, and with her less than sober state, who knows what would happen? Just when she was about to make a break for it though, Tom stopped. He stood at arm's length in front of her before stooping down to her eye level, and said, "Don't drink too much. You're not used to drinking anymore so your tolerance may not be the same as before." He blew on her face, chuckled at her startled and confused expression then left.

_What. the hell. was that?_

Hermione didn't know how long she stood there before Draco found her. She called for Harry soon after. Realizing her mind was too occupied to stay there and socialize, she bade her goodbye to Draco and his friends. Draco didn't hide his disappointment at her early departure but sent her off just the same, thinking that he should be grateful she was even there in the first place.

Harry arrived and Ginny was in the front seat with him. Hermione hugged the both of them in greeting but stayed quiet throughout the ride. When they asked her how the party went, she just replied with a quiet "Fine." The couple looked at each other questioningly but silently agreed that Hermione was in no state to talk so they let her be. Harry and Ginny talked about the interesting things that happened in their date just to fill in the silence, but they both knew Hermione was only half listening.

When Hermione entered her apartment, she just stood by the entryway and recounted everything that happened at the party. She again started to doubt if she had actually met Tom or her mind was just playing tricks on her after having consumed alcohol again for the first time in months.

She screamed in frustration, thankful that her walls were soundproof or else she would for sure be getting complaints from her neighbors for her outburst.

Tom was confusing her so much. She could feel her sanity slowly slipping away all because of Tom Marvolo fucking Riddle. Her life had been uneventful again for almost a year now. Why did he have to disrupt it all over again?

She finally decided to take a shower to clear her head. Maybe she really was just tipsy. After a good night's rest she would be okay again. Maybe. Hopefully.

She wasn't.

* * *

_She didn't know how it happened or who started it, but when she came to she was already kissing Tom Riddle like her life depended on it. His hold on the back of her head was firm as it gently guided her into deepening the kiss further. Her mind was racing. She realized they were still at the venue's underground parking lot and she was sitting in front. Tom's eyes were closed as he devoured her, and while she hungrily kissed him back, her mind also couldn't stop thinking, "what the hell is happening? Why are we kissing? Is this for real?" She was so confused and her mind going on overdrive led to her speedily sobering up. _

_After what felt like an eternity of kissing, Tom gradually let her lips go but only to trail kisses down her neck and earlobe. She shuddered. It felt too good, but she still couldn't stop herself from overthinking. So she gently pushed him away, and said, "Tom." He looked at her with hooded eyes then raised a brow. "You're drunk. We should stop now if you don't want to wake up with regrets tomorrow." He just answered her with a lazy smirk before kissing her once more. _

_At this point Hermione still had enough alcohol in her system to just let herself go and enjoy the feel of his lips against hers. He was a good kisser, she observed. _

_Hermione wasn't a stranger to kissing. She had been in a relationship before, and she'd had her fair share of dares which involved kissing - some even with girls. But no one has ever kissed her this passionately and cleanly before. French kisses can often get messy if one didn't know how to properly move the tongue or control saliva. But Tom, just like with everything else he does, was the perfect kisser even in his intoxicated state. The clashing of their tongues was explosive, and the timely light bites of the bottom lip every now and then aroused the two of them even more. In no time, Tom had his hand on her chest, over her top, and he was tantalizingly rubbing her mounds as Hermione let out a tiny whimper. _

_It's been so long since Hermione was touched like this. After her messy break up with Ron Weasley last year, Hermione hasn't been intimate with anyone else for over a year now. She had kept herself busy though so most days she was fine. But after getting touched again by Tom Riddle no less, she found herself deeply craving for more. _

_Tom smirked when he heard Hermione's little mewls. He started kissing her neck again, breathing in her intoxicating scent, before tugging down her top to expose her brassiere. He was happy to note that her bra was strapless and had a front clasp. He stared hungrily at the tops of her breasts spilling from the bra, and expertly unclasped it to expose her marvelous globes. Hermione blushed and attempted to cover herself, but Tom stopped him. With a mischievous glint in his eyes, Tom gave each nipple a lick and she shivered with a moan. Her nipples hardened from the hot feel of his tongue and then the cool sensation of the air after his licks. One thing was for sure: Tom knew what he was doing and he was really good at it. _

_Tom continued to tease her breasts with tiny flicks of his finger while he was sucking on her neck. 'That's going to leave a mark,' she thought but she couldn't care less right at that moment. He seemed to be taking his sweet time in teasing her and Hermione was already too riled up, too wet to stand for his teasing any longer. So she pushed him away - all the way to his seat. And with his back pressed on the driver's seat, she started to unbuckle his belt and unzip his pants. Tom looked on with unrestrained admiration at the fiery minx before him, then groaned when he felt her soft hands slowly grab hold of his cock as he took it out of his pants. She licked her lips and gave his cock two pumps, before slowly descending her head towards it._

Hermione woke with a start.

Her heart was beating fast and she could feel a sticky sensation in between her legs.

She blushed. She couldn't believe she dreamed about _that night_. She thought that memory has been deeply hidden in the crevices of her mind already - almost forgotten as to the details, and yet...

That dream was too vivid. It felt like she was back inside his car. Hermione screamed again, before plopping back on her bed when she saw it was only four in the morning. She needed to calm herself. She needed to be unbothered again.

It was a good thing she was on summer break already. She wouldn't have any chances of seeing Tom outside of school so she would have just enough time to gather her bearings and live her life normally once more. Six weeks of peace was all she needed.

Too bad life had other plans for her.

* * *

**A/N: **Just to provide you guys with a visual:

Here's what Hermione's cardigan looked like: images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcR7T2LFzxjHOtexp9A-ZB8E7-yQvqGseAtnjgusqp=CAU

And here's what she looked like without it: images/392x588/201811/F/women-s-summer-scoop-neck-sleeveless-ribbed-knit-cropped-tank-top_

I'm not gonna lie, writing the smut scene was so challenging. I felt so embarrassed while writing it and I was really hesitant about using the words for reproductive organs. I always thought I was pretty liberal, but writing this scene made me realize I may actually be quite the conservative. This is my first time writing a graphic sexual scene so it might not be good. I tried my best though.

I seem to really enjoy leaving cliffhangers here and there, please forgive me hehe. Well, I hope you guys liked this chapter! From here on out it's going to get a steamier, if you get my drift. Hopefully, I'll be able to get used to writing more mature scenes as the story progresses.

Stay safe and healthy, everyone! Ciao!


	6. Tom

If there's one thing that could be said about life, it's the fact that it's unfair. But to those who were dealt with a winning hand at first breath, this fact may not be as apparent.

Tom Riddle was born into a family descended from nobles of the middle ages on one hand, and a family of modern day tycoons on the other. Both the Gaunts and the Riddles had prestige attached to their names and Tom was raised not knowing anything less. Tom's childhood was then a whirlwind of getting education in traditional values and etiquette in the mornings, and various languages, social theories and world literature in the afternoons. To say that Tom was 'bred' for future greatness would not be an overstatement. However, the Gaunt-Riddle household experienced a great shift when the harrowing truth of the family was discovered by a fourteen-year-old Tom.

Merope Gaunt, Tom's mother and descendant of Salazar Slytherin, one of the most formidable nobles of the times, had been regularly and secretly administering a sort of drug in Tom Riddle Sr.'s morning coffee.

When Tom had first seen his mother add a powder-like substance in his father's coffee, he assumed it was just a supplement or a special condiment that his mother added to make his father's coffee taste more distinctive. He did not want to doubt his mother. However, Tom had been raised to never accept what's in front of him at face value. He was raised to always be critical and be suspicious of the people around him's every move. Hence, in all mornings after that, Tom would conceal himself behind the pillar near the kitchen and observe his mother as she pours the unknown substance in his father's drink.

He noticed that she would always check her surroundings before taking out the packet from her blouse's sleeve pocket. He noticed her haste and the way her eyes would shift from side to side as she pours. He also noted how she always did this early in the morning. Too early, actually, at half past four - a time when even the house-helps are not even up yet. That was another curious thing. His mother could never be caught dead serving others, and yet, here she was making his father's coffee. Tom would like to think that this was just a manifestation of his mother's love for his father, but the totality of the circumstances has only made Tom more and more suspicious of his mother.

One day, Tom stepped out of the pillar and made his presence known to his mother just when she was stirring the drink - packet and unknown substance now out of sight.

"Hello, Mother." Merope was never one to startle, but at that moment she jumped from the sudden intrusion.

"Tom! Where are your manners? You know that you should never sneak up on people like that." His mother admonished, and Tom politely apologized.

Aside from the initial shock, Merope appeared calm to the untrained eyes of strangers. But Tom, being her own flesh and blood, and not to mention having been raised to read people, could see the barely perceptible clench of her jaw as she looked at him questioningly with a raised brow.

"Why are you up early, Mother?" He paused then turned his eye to the coffee she was stirring. Her movements then shifted slightly, betraying her calm facade. "Could you make me coffee, too?" He then looked at his Mother with that charming smile he has learned to unnerve people.

His mother was not an exception, and for a while silence stretched between the two – each waiting in bated breath for the other to break.

Finally, Merope stopped her stirring and placed the coffee cup on the counter.

"Did you see?"

From that point on, Tom had only looked at his mother in disgust and his father with disdain. He viewed them as weak – his mother for being unable to conquer his father without using methods as primitive as drug use, and his father for being so gullible as to allow himself to be subdued in the most insulting way.

In a snap, all the prestige and pride Tom was raised to embrace with regard to his family and his roots disappeared. He felt nothing but shame for being the spawn of a farce of a marriage. So as soon as he was able, he left his ancestral home and pursued his higher education on the other side of the continent. He has not visited his parents since, and now even considers them as dead. He was able to establish a business which grew by the day to support himself. He was also able to secure a scholarship in his university for having the top marks out of all the examinees in the entrance exams. Tom Riddle decided to build his own prestige and reputation and doing so was like a walk in the park for him.

Apart from intelligence, he also had the looks and the charm. On his first day, eyes and whispers trailed him as he walked the hallways to his classroom. He was popular among girls, and respected by the men. His professors trusted him for his responsibility and dependableness, but his classmates had never looked at him in ire for that fact. They all admired his seeming perfection. He was serious as a student but he was also fun to be around with outside of class and especially in parties. Tom Riddle was known for being a generous lover but it was also common knowledge that he would never be caught dead hooking up with the same person twice. Despite this notoriety, Tom was sought after by all. Truly, in this new environment he had found himself in, he was still the king of the world.

But in the occasion of one college-wide party, Tom was deeply insulted by an inebriated woman with wild brown curly hair.

In the midst of his inner circle, Hermione Jean Granger, a student from the same college but in a different course, happily albeit shyly admitted her admiration for Tom. Tom inwardly smirked, satisfied to know he has managed to attract even a swot like her. But in the same breath, Tom felt his ego deflate when she later brushed off her admiration as 'no big deal' and the people around them actually agreed. Tom had never felt such indignation in his twenty years of existence.

Tom knew that Hermione actually tied with him in having the top marks in the whole of the university and it would have been interesting to see who of them would get the highest marks every examination. Sadly, he took Public Relations while she's taking up International Relations. Their courses were very similar though, hence, they had some classes together for the first two years of university. It is during those shared classes that Hermione might have fallen for Tom's charms, however, it seems those few classes were not enough to completely catch the attention of Hermione Jean. Tom was then determined. He would not be insulted again; he would make sure that Hermione would be reduced to a babbling mess of incoherence the next time she stood in front of him.

However, Hermione was a tough nut to crack.

True to her words, her admiration of Tom really did seem like it wasn't a big deal. Tom, while still subtle, made sure to always at least be within Hermione's peripheral vision. He was able to underhandedly maneuver his circle into teasing Hermione with him lest she forget about her attraction to him. But alas, all his efforts seem to produce the opposite effect. The more she interacted with him, the less flustered she became. She was treating him more and more like a friend, and it just infuriated Tom even more.

Tom had never failed in anything he has set out to do, and getting Hermione Granger wouldn't be his first failure. Not if he could help it. Hence, despite the utter banality of what he was about to do, when the opportunity for besting Hermione Granger presented itself, he only took a second to decide his course of action and see it to fruition.

Well aware of Hermione's tendency to let loose when consuming alcohol, Tom stoked the fires of Hermione's competitive spirit by drawing attention to himself as he conquered in the beer pong table. He knew that like himself, Hermione never settled for second place, and while she may choose to lay low when sober, she was a firecracker when introduced with just the right amount of alcohol. And soon enough, the moves he laid down started to follow the pattern he envisioned. He allowed himself to lose without making it obvious that he had let her won, knowing full well that his gain would be more than the slight humiliation he would have to feign for losing against a woman.

Everything was going as he planned up until they entered his car that was parked underground.

He miscalculated his alcohol intake. Without him noticing it, he had drunk too much to the point that he was blissfully unaware of what was happening to him and around him for a while. The intoxicating effect was delayed, probably triggered by his elation upon the realization that he was close to making Hermione eat her words.

He only came to when he felt a hot mouth surrounding his cock. He was disoriented but he could not deny the pleasure bubbling in his stomach as Hermione expertly licked and sucked his cock. He has had his fair share of blowjobs, but the way Hermione did it had him on edge. Maybe it was because it was Hermione that was doing it – the self-satisfaction and pride that came with the knowledge that Hermione was worshiping his cock at that moment added to the intensity of his excitement. She was not afraid to make lewd sounds as she expertly bobbed her head up and down his shaft, hand enclosed on the parts she couldn't reach, making little squeezes that perfectly complemented the swirl of her tongue on the head of his cock. She definitely knew what she was doing, and Tom found himself getting harder at the thought that the bookworm was actually hiding a naughty side to her, and he was able to see that side for himself. He smirked. Outwardly this time. This was not what he had in mind when he initiated his move, but this was a bigger win for him. What better way to unnerve a girl than sleep with her without it meaning anything?

Tom gently tapped Hermione's shoulders, and with a plop, she released his cock then looked at Tom with a raised brow. Tom lifted her chin to raise her head at eye level, then he leaned closer to her ear. With a husky drawl, he uttered, "Wanna fuck?" then proceeded to lick her earlobe and lazily suck on it as he made his way down to her neck. Leaving long languid licks and kisses at the long expanse of her marvelous neck. His hand was slowly making its way to the front of her trousers, leaving a hot trail from in between her chest, down to her navel.

Hermione was flushed, hot, willing, and wet. So when she pushed him away, and proceeded to settle back in her seat, Tom furrowed his brows, unable to mask the confusion and annoyance on his face. Hermione tentatively looked at him and said, in a small voice, "Let's go home, Tom. It's almost four in the morning." Tom was floored. _She tricked me!_

Tom was seething, but also secretly amused. He met his match it seems. Here he thought he had her eating out of his hand, but he should have known that simple seduction would not work on someone like Hermione Granger. He had to give her props for taking him by surprise once again. He did not take this as a defeat. She was still in her car. He could still defeat her.

Straightening himself as well, Tom nimbly placed his cock inside his trousers again, fixed his disheveled hair, then turned to Hermione with a smile. "Of course, Granger." Hermione twitched, realizing only now that she called him Tom a while ago – an effect of their earlier intimate exchange. Tom inwardly smirked, proud that she noticed how he emphasized his detachment from what happened between them. He started the engine, and placed his hand on the gear stick, ready to leave. "Where do you live?"

* * *

Hermione was nervously twirling her pen in between her fingers. She was in a conference room with four other people she didn't know. It was her first day interning at Hogwarts, an NGO dedicated to monitoring the activities of the government and making reports to the UN on a bi-annual basis. She was here to satisfy her 240-hour-internship-requirement as an incoming graduating student.

Hogwarts was the best training ground for students of International Relations courses. Aside from the fact that the internship in Hogwarts adds practical experience, being able to intern there also opens a lot of job opportunities for the future. They only accept the best students in the top universities and Hermione had been lucky enough to be accepted almost immediately upon her application. Now here she was, in a room with blaring fluorescent lights above her head, trying to avoid eye contact with her co-interns whom she had introduced herself to earlier and had exchanged small talk with for half an hour. She had been told there were seven interns this year, but the two other people are yet to make an appearance.

Suddenly, the door to the conference room opened once again, and inside walked Draco Malfoy dressed to the nines. Hermione released a sigh of relief, and gestured for Draco to take the seat she reserved for him. Draco all but skipped to her side.

"Why are you so late?" Hermione half whispered and shouted even before Draco's bum could touch his seat. Draco laughed and slightly ruffled Hermione's hair, much to her annoyance. It took her over an hour trying to tame her unruly locks, and here this blond git was messing it in mere seconds. She glared at Draco who just looked even more amused.

"Relax, Granger. It's not even nine yet." He adjusted his seat so it would be closer to Hermione's, then said, "It's not my fault you're too eager to slave yourself and came here an hour early." Draco rolled his eyes teasingly at Hermione, and before the latter could retort, Draco stood and extended his hand towards the other people in the room to introduce himself.

With Draco there, the room was less tense and an easy conversation among the six was actually carried out. Before long, the clock struck nine, and like clockwork, the door opened once again to admit another person. Hermione thought it was going to be someone from Hogwart's HR department, coming to finally start their orientation, but instead she was met with familiar dark eyes crowned by perfect eyebrows.

"Riddle?" Hermione couldn't stop herself from exclaiming.

And as always, he smirked.


	7. The Plan

Tom had always prided himself in being able to control his anger, or rather, being able to mask it behind a deceptively charming smile. However, at this moment, Tom did not even bother to conceal his annoyance at the woman sitting on his passenger's seat. Oh wait, scratch that. She was sleeping.

_The audacity!_

It hasn't even been that long since she was sucking his cock, and yet here she was, blissfully sleeping as he drove them to her house. The confidence Tom felt as he started his engine a short while ago was all but gone. This was not how he envisioned the second phase of his plan to be. She was not supposed to ignore him like this! Tom very nearly slammed the breaks just to jolt her awake, but he soon realized that would be too uncharacteristic of him.

Or was it?

At a red light, Tom slammed the breaks, and surely enough, Hermione was jolted awake. Then, without even waiting for her to become aware of her surroundings, Tom grabbed Hermione by the back of her head and kissed her roughly – silently punishing her for having the gall to act like she wasn't bothered by him at all.

At the sound of an angry honk coming from behind them, Tom smirked as he finally let go of Hermione's head. She still had her eyes closed and her mouth slightly opened. When she finally opened her eyes, she blushed. Then shyly, she commented, "I guess you're still drunk?" _Silly girl._ Tom stepped on the pedal and drove again then replied, "I guess."

Hermione stayed awake the rest of the ride to her place, and every time Tom stopped because of a red light, (_God, she never noticed just how many traffic lights there were in London!), _Tom would kiss her just as intensely as the first time he did it since they left the parking basement. Hermione felt like she was drunk all over again.

Her lips must be really swollen by now, but she couldn't be bothered by it at that moment. She had decided to just not think and simply take in the moment she was sharing with Tom Riddle as it is. She'll start worrying about everything tomorrow – or rather when she wakes up later in her own bed. Alone...?

After what felt like an eternity, Hermione finally spotted the familiar line of townhouses leading up to her place. She pointed to her building, and Tom stopped across the street, just in front of her neighbor's gate. He stopped the engine and Hermione proceeded to unbuckle her seat belt. She then faced him to say her thanks and to offer an awkward wave goodbye, but before she could even do any of those, he grabbed the back of her head again and kissed her passionately. '_How much did he drink?!' _Hermione couldn't help but think to herself.

It was almost five now, and he had parked his car right under the streetlight which made them pretty visible. His windows were tinted pretty darkly, but the windshield was barely tinted so anyone walking from that direction would be able to see them. Tom didn't seem bothered by it. Hermione was, but she was in a trance. She couldn't refuse him at all.

Tom trailed kisses down her neck, giving rapt attention to the skin near the middle of her throat. He sucked and gently bit on that part of her skin before soothingly licking and pecking that same spot. He moved away a little, training his eyes on the spot he had given much of his attention to.

He smirked proudly. He marked her.

_Mine_.

He inwardly growled.

He then proceeded to caress every part of her body that he could touch. He played with her breasts – her full and firm breasts which he never even knew she had prior to tonight. He peppered the exposed tops of her breasts with kisses, then lowered her top together with her bra to give her breasts and nipples the same attention. He sucked her nipples as Hermione moaned louder with every suck and every fondle. Tom then went back to her neck. Oh how he loved her neck. He wanted to leave hickeys all over her body. He had an unbelievable desire to mark her entirely, to let everyone know that he had been with her. To announce that, for at least a night, _she was his._

So he laved her neck and sucked on it more as his fingers made its way to the front of her trousers. She sensed where he was going, so she helped him by unbuttoning and unzipping her trousers. He momentarily stopped kissing her neck to look at her.

She was wearing the littlest red thong he had ever seen.

_Christ._

He kissed her again. Hungrier than before. More intense. More urgent. Just…

"More."

He almost didn't hear her because she whispered it so softly. Voice laced with so much desire, she was barely audible.

But he heard her and he could not help but feel that he had finally triumphed.

His fingers made his way to her cunt. He reached the tops of her thong, and teasingly, he left feather-light touches on his way to her folds. She was shivering at this point. Greatly anticipating what was to come. He finally pressed his middle finger between her folds. _Swipe_. She moaned, as she grabbed on his shoulders for balance. She was still sitting yet she felt like she could topple over at any time due to the intensity of the pleasure she was experiencing. Tom made slow circles in between her folds, near her opening, then raised those circles higher and higher until he reached her clit. "T-Tom. Ahhh.." her moans were getting higher and higher in frequency and pitch. Her eyes closed in ecstasy as Tom touched her in all the right places. She could feel herself almost cumming, and Tom could sense it, too.

Tom stopped, and Hermione whined at the loss. He smirked, then, with the same finger he used to pleasure her, he tilted her chin and forced her to look at him in the eye. He placed his finger on her mouth, and slowly opened it, making her lick her own juices while Tom intently looked at her with his dark dilated eyes.

His cock was straining his pants.

He wanted to fuck her. Now.

"Granger."

"Hm?" Hermione stopped sucking his finger, but she didn't remove it from her mouth. The vibration caused by her hum only made his cock grow harder.

"Let's fuck."

Hermione stilled, and as if breaking out of a trance, she removed his finger in her mouth, fixed herself and then looked at Tom again. He looked surprisingly calm, and seeing this may have been the reason why Hermione became honest with him.

"I can't, Tom." He tilted his head slightly, conveying his confusion as to why she couldn't without saying so.

Hermione sighed.

"I'm a virgin."

And with that she left a confused and disbelieving Tom with a still raging hard on.

* * *

The memory from that night and Hermione's subsequent aloofness was what fueled Tom Riddle in making sure that Hermione Granger would _never_ be able to escape him. Not in her thoughts, and not in her physical presence.

He bid his time. He made her lower her guard around him before pouncing. And when he saw that she had finally relaxed and moved on from what happened between them, he made his move.

True, in the beginning, he only wanted to make her pay for deeming her fancy over him as 'no big deal.' He wanted to shame her by making her realize just how much she was actually affected by him. How her little fancy actually _was_ a big deal. But she somehow insulted him further by leaving him hanging in last year's end-of-term party, giving a lousy an excuse as claiming she was a virgin.

Like hell she was.

She was too responsive, her mouth and tongue too experienced, to be deemed a virgin. He was certain it was a ploy. Everybody thought Hermione Granger was just another goody-two-shoes but she fooled them all. She's cunning and manipulative, almost in the same level as him even. She knew how to play the game and knew how to win. And right now, he hates that she has been winning but that's about to change. Tom made sure of it.

This time, Tom will have the last laugh after he succeeds in making Hermione Granger fall in love with him only to break her heart in the end.

"Granger." He made his way to the seat right across from her. "Thanks for the warm welcome. I didn't think you'd be that excited to see me." His smirk seemed like a permanent feature of his face already with how long he's had it while he looked at Hermione. Hermione blushed but looked indignant.

"Says who?!" She looked away. Annoyed at how childish she was acting in front of her new colleagues, but Tom has been having this effect on her recently. She couldn't help being a slave to the sway of her emotions, and she couldn't figure out why.

Draco looked at the two of them worriedly, and he was about to ask what was going on between them but the HR representative finally entered the room and began the orientation.

* * *

"So..."

Hermione groaned, sensing what Draco was about to say.

"Don't ask." But this just made Draco even more curious.

He proceeded to pester her by taking the end of one of her curls that was tied in a ponytail and twirling it around. He knew how much it irritated her when someone touched her hair, more so if they played with it. Draco knew that just a few minutes of his antics would make her snap at him and they'd bicker on and on until either one of them gets tired. He should really find other ways to catch her attention but this was technically the first time Draco had ever fancied anyone so it was understandable that his way of expressing his fondness of her was akin to a school boy's.

Hermione was just about to tackle Draco when a stack of papers were slammed on the table in front of them. They both looked up and saw Tom. Without even letting go of Hermione's hair, Draco asked, "what are you doing here, Tom? Isn't your office in another floor with Bellatrix?" Tom didn't even look at Draco and just trained his eye on Draco's hand that was still twirling Hermione's hair.

Hermione shoved Draco away, suddenly noticing how close they were after bickering with each other. She cleared her throat and echoed Draco. "Yeah, Riddle? What are you doing here?"

Tom finally looked at them and smiled.

"We've been assigned on a case together."

"The three of us?" Draco and Hermione asked almost at the same time.

Tom's smile grew wider.

"No, just you and me." He said while looking at Hermione.

* * *

**A/N: **Hi! I'm starting to work on my thesis again, and I started another story for another fandom in another website so my updates for this fic won't be as regular anymore (but again, I'll try to update as soon as I can).

Draco may seem a little OOC in this fanfic, but I always thought Draco would be this playful and charming boy had he not been drilled with prejudice since he was young. So that's the Draco in this story: rich and prestigious but not marred with prejudice.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter even though it was short. _That night_ has been completely revealed so it's safe to say we're almost at the end of this story.

Feel free to leave a review saying your comments or thoughts. I wrote this as way to cope and stay sane during these troubling times, but reading reviews or getting notifications as to people adding this to their favorites or alerts list really make me happy too, so if it's not too much of a bother, do drop by even just to say hi :)

I hope you are all safe and well. Ciao! Catch you all again in the next update!


	8. Trigger

Not even a second after Draco bolted through the door to demand why he was being left out on the case assigned to Tom and Hermione when Hermione and him were partners, Tom had Hermione caged in her seat.

"I lied. Me, you, Malfoy and Lestrange were the ones assigned on the case." Hermione glared at Tom. Furious he had her in that position again. She tried to push him away but Tom was as strong as ever and her efforts only exhausted her without achieving anything.

"What the hell is your problem?!"

Tom smirked, and leaned closer to her ear before whispering.

"Four weeks, Granger. We'll be together for four straight weeks and I assure you once these four weeks are over, you'd regret ever trying to double cross me." Before Hermione could even ask him what the hell he meant by her double crossing him, he gave her ear a little nibble then stood up straight. Hermione was frozen in her seat.

He smirked at her flustered face, fixed his tie then retrieved the top portion of the stack of documents he slammed on the table a while ago. Just as he tucked the documents under his arm, Draco burst in the door once more, exclaiming, "what the hell, Riddle? You lied?"

Tom chuckled good-naturedly at Draco but Hermione knew it was meant to be a condescending laugh. He then tapped Draco on the shoulder as he made his way to the door. "I was just messing with you, Draco." He smiled teasingly at the other man, and Draco, seeing the humor in the situation, laughed. As the door closed behind Tom, Hermione was already counting the ways she could make Tom Riddle stop being a pompous arse.

* * *

The room was silent as Hermione, Tom, Draco, and Bellatrix sit together in one of the Conference Rooms of Hogwarts. They were waiting for their mentors to arrive to brief them on the case they were assigned on, but it seemed they were a bit early.

Never one to sit still, Draco turned his attention to Hermione to talk to her, but before he could, Tom called him.

"Draco."

Draco shifted his attention to Tom and raised a brow at him. While they were on first name basis, it was more because their parents were within the same circles rather than because they themselves were close. It was probably the first time Tom addressed him first and directly so it was no surprise that he was a bit taken aback by hearing him suddenly call him.

"How are Lucius and Narcissa?" Now Draco was even more shoced. Tom _never _asked about his parents. Because asking him about his parents would naturally mean Draco would have to ask Tom about _his_ parents. It was no secret that Tom was estranged from them. Draco couldn't help but be curious indeed about Tom's weird behavior. But Draco was raised to never be rude to colleagues and prospective business partners, so he answered just as cordially as how Tom asked.

"They're quite fine, Tom. Thank you for asking. How are Merope and Tom, Sr.?"

Hermione had been silently observing their exchange and the slight twitch of Tom's eye did not escape her notice upon the mention of who she assumed was his parents' names. She was eagerly waiting for how Tom would answer after seeing that talking about them made him feel uncomfortable.

But Tom never got to answer because Bellatrix suddenly chimed in and asked, "You're the Tom Riddle of the Gaunt-Riddles?"

Bella had an annoyingly high-pitched voice and high cheekbones, and more often than not, she acted a tad bit like she herself was high all the time. Hermione had only had minimal interactions with Bella that day but she was already certain that she was _not_ looking forward to working with the woman. There was something about her that was eerily frightening - an air about her that makes you feel like she could torture you with glee.

Yes, Hermione _definitely_ did not want to work with her at all.

"Unfortunately." Tom replied with a smile, and Hermione couldn't stop herself from looking at him with curiosity. She was about to ask him why it was unfortunate but their mentors finally arrived and the briefing started.

* * *

"I can't believe I ended up getting stuck with you in the end."

Draco and Bella had just left to request for access to Hogwarts' library, the former looking quite disappointed that he was not paired up with Hermione for this case.

Their mentors divided their tasks into two and paired them by twos as well. Hermione and Tom were assigned with conducting interviews and gathering data, while Draco and Bella were assigned with research work and cross-referencing for their report.

When Draco asked why they had to switch partners, their mentors just said that there would be a less subjective output if the partners were not from the same course. While what the mentors said made sense on the surface, in reality, Hermione could not help but think their logic was flawed since both disciplines were too interrelated, any difference between the two would be superficial. Tom and Bella were Public Relations students, while Draco and Hermione took International Relations, it was the very reason why they were paired up the way they were in the first place.

She had no proof and it might seem too unreasonable but Hermione was certain Tom had a hand at this sudden switch.

"Well, you better believe it, Granger. I guess Fate just wants you to stick with me." Tom smirked as he stood up, gathering his belongings and the manila folder containing the addresses of the places they were to conduct the interviews in. He headed towards the door.

"Well, what are you waiting for? C'mon, Granger. It's time to work." He went out without ceremony and left a fuming Hermione in the room.

"Fate, my arse! This is all you're doing, Riddle!" Hermione shouted and it seems the room was not soundproof at all because she soon heard Tom chuckling at her outburst.

She stormed after him.

* * *

"There is no way I am going with you in that thing." Hermione had her arms crossed as she glares at Tom and his annoying smirk.

"Why not, Granger? Afraid you might start sucking my -" before Tom could say anything else, Hermione ran towards him to cover his mouth.

"Shut the fuck up, Riddle! Don't you dare bring that up! Especially not here!"

Hermione had both of her hands over Tom's mouth but she could still feel the smirk that was undoubtedly on his face at that moment. Tom just raised his brow in challenge and she understood that little move as him saying, '_so if it's not here, I can bring it up?' _With that thought she was suddenly gripped with the temptation to cover his nose too so he would stop breathing.

Hermione shook her head, surprised at her own murderous intent.

Tom took her distraction as an opportunity to switch their positions. He easily grabbed her by her hands and pushed her on the side of his car. She found herself once again caged by Tom. He smirked, but it was gone the very minute she spoke.

"Are you gonna make a habit out of this?" she scoffed at him, irking him even more with her feigned indifference as to the situation.

_'You little_ minx.' Tom felt his rage building up at the fact that Hermione was not acting the way he wanted her to. He was about to rattle her by giving her another searing kiss but it seems he has indeed made a habit of it already because Hermione anticipated his move.

Her hands suddenly shot up again to cover his mouth. Catching Tom by surprise, she was able to successfully push him away, and before Tom could recover and trap her again, she hurriedly grabbed the manila folder slightly protruding in his briefcase and walked towards the opposite direction of his car.

When she was a few meters away, she craned her neck to look back at Riddle, and copying his smirk, said, "This is getting old, Riddle. Find a new game to play." She looked ahead again, and started walking. The beep of a car getting unlocked sounded from afar and Hermione shouted without looking back at Tom, "you better be in the first venue on time, Riddle. I am not going to wait for you!"

Tom kicked his tire.

_'Damn you, Hermione_ Granger.' He lost again.

* * *

When they were briefed on the case, Hermione thought their assignment was pretty straightforward. There was a lot of leg work involved since they had to conduct interviews with more than a handful of individuals, but she considered that little fact as being cumbersome at most.

She did not expect their task to put her in danger at all.

Her instincts were on alert as she stepped foot on the slightly rundown building they were scheduled to conduct the first interview in. Hermione had triple checked her GPS location and the address stated in the manila folder she grabbed from Tom when she was told by her phone that she had arrived in her destination, not convinced that she was in the right place. But her phone was right. The address in her phone and in the file matched.

Hermione could have waited for Tom, but their appointment was about to start and she purposely sent him the address of the interview venue late because she had not wanted to do this with him. She knew it was childish, but she was certain that she could conduct an interview without any help from Tom. Besides, she was still fuming at him for, first of all, suddenly showing up in Hogwarts, and secondly, for toying with her, not once, but twice, that day. Hence, fueled by this anger, Hermione picked up the recorder Hogwarts provided and stepped out of the car and into the eerily quiet and empty street housing the building poorly named the Shrieking Shack.

The door creaked as it closed and Hermione squinted at her surroundings. She was hoping the facade of the building was only meant to throw off people wandering into it, but the inside was every bit as eerie as the outside. She involuntarily shivered and she forced herself to take more steps as she looked for the reception desk. But there was none.

Her peripheral vision registered sudden movement and she froze.

Something did not feel right.

She slowly turned her head towards the direction of the movement and she was greeted by the sight of three menacing men in dark clothes, all looking at her with malice. She suddenly felt naked with how each man was raking their eyes over her body. She tightened her grip on the recorder, wishing she had her phone with her instead. She belatedly realized that she foolishly left her phone mounted in her car.

She took a deep breath then tried to smile at the men before her. She failed.

"Good morning, gentlemen." She nearly bit off her tongue in protest at calling the men before her anything other than vile. "I'm here in behalf of Hogwarts. I -" she stopped talking when the biggest man among the three arched his eyebrow at the mention of Hogwarts and then gestured for the other two. They started walking towards her. It was only then that Hermione realized how much she messed up.

Her instincts were right. This isn't the right place. Maybe it was her GPS, or maybe it was the information given to them. Whatever it was, something happened which led her to a place she shouldn't be in.

Her mind was racing as she was trying to think up of a way out of the situation. She could just bolt out of there but she was sure that running away would do nothing but deplete her energy because the three men would be able to easily catch up to her. She was sure irritating these men by trying to run away would only put her in more trouble.

As she stood there thinking of ways to escape, the shorter of the three spoke up, "You're a pretty little thing aren't, ya? Did Hogwarts send you here as a bribe? The almighty Hogwarts finally realized they won't be able to catch their fish without using dirty tricks?" Hermione furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at what the man said. She analyzed every word of it, trying to decipher what he meant. But her thoughts were cut off when the man who just spoke to her removed his coat, and loosened his tie. He licked his lips and looked at Hermione hungrily.

Her mind went blank - suddenly gripped with fear.

She could not believe this was happening to her on her first day at her internship. For a job assigned to her by Hogwarts. Suddenly, she didn't care if running was futile. She decided running was better than allowing the three men heading towards her to just approach her unmoving body. She did not want to give them the satisfaction of thinking she was not against this.

She ran, and just as she predicted, they came after her.

She hadn't been that far from the entrance, but her shaking hands and trembling body weakened her coordination and physical strength considerably. Even as she reached the door, she had trouble pushing it open, suddenly feeling like it weighed more than twice her weight.

But when the biggest man was able to latch unto the sleeve of her top, the door suddenly opened and she thought she was going to fall face down. But she didn't.

Instead she was dragged behind the figure of a person.

"Macnair, Rowle, Dolohov." His tone was even but was cold as ice as he acknowledged each man before him. The three suddenly froze as they looked at Tom in shock.

"T-Tom." One of them stuttered.

Tom gently brought Hermione to his side before addressing the three now still men before him. "I see you've met my partner. I certainly hope you've treated her well." Tom's voice was as smooth as velvet and yet his words cut at them like sharpened knives. They gulped, now realizing that they made a mistake. They made Tom angry and God only knew what would happen to them for making him angry.

"W-we're sorry, Tom. We didn't know you were with her. We just thought she was a whore sent by Hogwarts." Dolohov realized his slip up too late. When he glanced at Tom to gauge his reaction, he was smiling at him.

He knew he was as good as dead.

Tom dismissed them shortly thereafter, and he dragged Hermione to the direction of his car which was parked farther away from the building. When they reached it, Tom suddenly turned to Hermione.

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

Hermione was taken aback at Tom shouting at her, more so being blatantly angry at her. She was so startled, she didn't answer. Tom shouted at her again. "Are you stupid?! Why would you go inside a building that's clearly suspicious? And alone at that?" Tom was red in the face with all the shouting he was doing and Hermione really could not help but marvel at this sight. "And why didn't you pick up when I called?! You could have saved a lot of energy and time if you picked up my call before or while you were inside that building!"

Tom was breathing in huffs. His temper had now completely taken over. He was furious at Hermione. Furious at her foolishness. Furious at her stupidity. And furious at her silence right now. '_She doesn't even have the decency to apologize for the trouble she caused!' _He angrily thought.

When he saw the address that Hermione sent him, Tom immediately set for the Shrieking Shack, probably committing a handful of traffic violations with his speeding. The fool had grabbed the wrong folder from his briefcase. He knew he had the folder inside his bag, that's why he was surprised when Hermione was able to grab it. But it turned out she grabbed the wrong one. What she took was a file he used in his business dealings.

For a second, he had berated himself for his carelessness in storing his sensitive file, but soon focused all his anger on Hermione's recklessness.

His business wouldn't flourish as quickly as it did had he not dealt with the dubious individuals listed in the folder Hermione grabbed. Tom had always had a knack for manipulating people into doing his bid, and dealing with low lives like Macnair, Rowle, and Dolohov was in his area of expertise. People like them were harmless as flies to Tom, but they could be the devil's incarnate to other people. Especially to prigs like Hermione Granger.

So when Tom arrived at the address, he wasted no time in entering the Shrieking Shack. What he saw made him livid but he did not let it show. He would deal with Macnair and the other two later. Upon leaving, however, Tom's fury bubbled up inside him again and this time he did not bother masking it.

He was furious at Hermione and he would make her know it. He didn't want to think about _why_ he was furious. He just wanted to focus on his fury.

But Hermione did the opposite. She thought of what could have possibly made him this angry and she could only think of one thing.

So maybe it was just the sight of Tom getting so unhinged over her. Or maybe his car really had some form of magic in it.

Or maybe... it was the sudden realization that when the three men had wanted to touch her a while ago, she was absolutely terrified, but when Tom touched her, she would crave for more.

Maybe it was all of these these combined.

Whatever it was, something clicked within Hermione which made her step closer to a furious Tom and kiss him.

* * *

**A/N: **Hi all! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I only have 1 or 2 chapters left before this story comes to an end. Thank you so much for reading, and special thanks also to those who left reviews and/or added this story their favorites and alerts!

I'll keep this note short because I don't really have much to say. I hope you are all safe and well. Ciao!


	9. Trail

When Hermione kissed Tom while he was fuming mad at her, she hadn't expected him to angrily push her away and glare at her.

Confused and ashamed, Hermione could only follow him into his car helplessly as Tom ordered her inside, remarking that she was not allowed to drive herself anywhere that day so as to avoid a repeat of her stupidity. Tom said he would have someone tow her car later instead, and that she better not go anywhere near the Shrieking Shack ever again.

He was condescending but Hermione was too beaten and afraid to fight with him on that matter.

Her back was straight as a needle as she watched the road zooming by in front of her. Tom was silent and cold as ice as he drove them to the place they were supposed to conduct their first interview in. Nobody addressed the elephant in the room, both silently agreeing to fulfill all their tasks today with zero unnecessary interactions.

After going in and out of six buildings and conducting a series of interviews with dull politicians and statesmen, Tom and Hermione finally found themselves back in the parking basement of Hogwarts.

When Hermione was about to open the door to leave, Tom suddenly clasped her arm to stop her.

"Where do you think you're going?"

His voice rang deep, and Hermione reluctantly looked back to check his expression. He was still quite cross with her.

"Back to the office? We still have to clock out, and I'm going to wait for my car to arrive there." Her tone was even but the quickening of her pulse betrayed her seeming calmness. This did not go unnoticed by Tom and he smirked.

"Don't think you could just kiss me and run away, Granger." He started leaning closer towards her, then huskily said, "Not again."

Tom grabbed her by the back of her head and kissed her furiously. He wasted no time in licking her lower lip and lightly biting it to coax her mouth into opening. At the slight crack of her mouth, he swiftly entered his tongue to invite hers in a battle. Hermione could barely breathe, overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events. Why was he kissing her when he turned her down earlier that day?What game was he playing at and why was she being a willing participant of it?

In the midst of Hermione's inner monologue, Tom guided her head closer towards him, making her whole body follow her. Slowly, Hermione found herself following Tom's lead and making her way to his seat to place herself on top of his lap. When their crotches made contact, both of them groaned into the kiss.

Hermione started squirming as Tom lowered the hand that wasn't holding the back of her head down to her back to make slow soothing circles on it. Hermione encircled her hands unto Tom's neck, finally deciding to be a more active participant in the kiss. Their tongues danced with each other as Hermione gyrated her hips, making the bulge that was pressed directly on her covered core grow larger by the second.

"You little witch." Tom hissed as he made his way down to her neck, leaving angry little kisses on its trail. "I won't let you escape today." He sucked on the side of her neck until he was sure he left a mark there then laved on it generously to contrast the painful sensation he earlier evoked.

_Mine._

His need was primal. He was determined to make her his completely, and Hermione felt this in the way he pleasured her with his mouth and his caresses. With the way his hips were making small upward movements to meet hers in a delicious rubbing of their crotches. She could feel it and it made her wet and horny but she knew she had to stop them.

They were in Hogwarts and it's hardly professional of them to have sex in his car. Granted, it's parked in the basement, but they're still technically in their workplace.

More importantly, she was still every bit the virgin she was a year ago when Tom had her in his car, too. Sure they were no longer drunk, but she still wouldn't want her first time to take place in the driver's seat of a car parked in her work place. She wasn't a prude or a romantic, but she would at the very least like her first time to be in a bed or somewhere less stuffy. With these in mind, Hermione halted the motion of her hips, and removed her hands from around Tom's neck.

Tom hadn't noticed Hermione's sudden inaction, too busy leaving kisses on her neck and clavicle, while his hands were fondling her clothed breasts.

Hermione gently pushed Tom's shoulders, effectively detaching his lips from her neck, but failing to remove his hands from her breasts. Tom glared at her.

"Tom." The man just raised his brow in annoyance, impatience clear on his face.

"We can't do this." Tom's eyes hardened as he clenched his teeth. He looked every bit like someone trying his hardest to control an incoming tantrum. She only realized then that she should've said something else rather than just tell Tom he couldn't do something.

Hermione was preparing herself for the worst, but in a flash, the struggling angry Tom was gone, replaced by a composed and bored-looking Tom Riddle.

"And why can't we, Granger?" He still had his hands on her breasts. He stopped fondling it when she told him they couldn't continue what they were doing but he started making teasing motions on them again as soon as he composed himself. He slowly started to smirk at her as if taunting her. He gave one boob a squeeze as he lightly pinched her nipple on the other. Hermione whimpered, then clasped her hands to cover her mouth, annoyed she couldn't hide how much his ministrations were affecting her.

_Tom Riddle, you bastard!_ She could only curse him in her mind.

"Why aren't you answering me, Granger?" He started to unbutton her blouse as he made little swipes on the flesh underneath it. "Cat got your tongue again?" Hermione flushed at the memory of the last time he dropped that line on her. It didn't help her already heated state.

Tom lowered his head to lick her nipple that was now almost visible to his searching eyes. Hermione had already succumbed to the desires of her body - earlier qualms now forgotten.

But them a loud and incessant ringing suddenly filled the small enclosed space and both heads turned - Hermione's away from Tom, and Tom's down in annoyance.

Tom grabbed his phone which was mounted on his car then answered the call. Hermione took this opportunity to scramble out of Tom's lap and back to her seat to fix herself. By the time she was done, Tom had also ended the call (quite angrily at that). He turned to her and with an even tone said, "Your car's already here." Hermione simply nodded. She took this as her cue to leave so she turned away from Tom to once more try to open the door. She wasn't hindered from doing so this time, but as she was about to close the door, she heard Tom say, "You're not gonna get away from me next time, Granger." She practically ran to the lifts.

* * *

Draco had seen Hermione in various states in the year that he has known her. He's seen her when she had just pulled off an all nighter for school - dark rings under her eyes and with a perpetual frown on her face. He has also seen her in a childlike state like the time she got so excited over the release of a new book by an author she likes. And quite recently, he's seen a relaxed and social butterfly Hermione after consuming just the right amount of alcohol.

But the Hermione that greeted him now was a Hermione he never even thought to picture more so witness firsthand.

When the door to their office suddenly opened without a knock, Draco knew it could only be Hermione who probably just finished doing her round of interviews with Tom. So when he looked up in excitement, ready to greet the girl he found himself being greatly fond of, he wasn't quite prepared for the sight that greeted him.

The only way Draco could describe how Hermione looked right now was thoroughly ravaged and he couldn't stop himself from picturing how she could've ended up that way.

He was both turned on and madly jealous, but outwardly, he could only gulp before squeaking out a barely audible "Hey."

Hermione barely acknowledged Draco as she hurriedly gathered her things. Draco could only stare at her.

Her hair was slightly messy, but the mess was of such a way that screamed someone had just ran his hands all over it. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips were full and swollen, indicating that she most probably had been kissed quite thoroughly not too long ago.

But the biggest give away was the glaring bruise on her neck. It couldn't be anything other than a love bite, and Draco felt his cock twitch in his trousers upon the thought of leaving a mark on Hermione, too. He inwardly groaned. It seems he would have to relieve himself tonight with the thoughts of Hermione begging him to mark her all over her body.

Amidst these traitorous thoughts, however, was a pressing thought of concern for Hermione. Shaking his head, Draco cleared his throat and addressed Hermione. "Granger." Hermione was visibly startled by Draco suddenly calling her name but she composed herself then looked at him with a raised brow.

"Are you alright?" Concern was dripping in Draco's tone and Hermione couldn't help but smile at Draco.

"Yes, of course." She laughed nervously before tucking an errant strand of hair behind her ear. "You sure?" Draco asked again, inching closer to Hermione. He could see the love bite even clearer now, and he could feel his ears start to redden and his cock come alive again. But he inwardly admonished Little Draco, telling him it was not the right place or time to lust over the sexy vixen in front of him.

"I'm fine, Malfoy." She gave him a teasing smile before saying, "you really should stop being so nice to me." She looked at him with amused eyes. "I might get the wrong idea." She laughed to lighten the mood, expecting Draco to laugh with her, but the latter just sat still and remained quiet. When Hermione noticed this, she abruptly stopped laughing then asked Draco, "Are _you_ alright?" She now sat on her office chair then scoot closer to Draco's. Their tables were adjacent to each other's and their chairs had wheels so it was easy to maneuver.

After what felt like an eternity, Draco turned to her and with a serious face asked, "what if it's not wrong?" Hermione furrowed her brows in confusion, not understanding what he meant.

"What if 'what's' not wrong?"

Draco looked her straight in the eye then slowly said, "What if your idea's not wrong?"

Hermione took several breaths before finally bursting in laughter. She hit Draco's arm lightly before exclaiming, "Good one, Malfoy! You almost got me for a minute there!" As Hermione continued to laugh, Draco's earlier determination dwindled until finally he laughed awkwardly along with her while scratching the back of his head.

After a while, Hermione bid Draco goodbye but not before thanking him again for a good laugh. Draco also left soon after, feeling dejected at Hermione's indirect and subtle rejection of his feelings.

It was not until later that night that Draco began to connect the dots as to who could have possibly given Hermione that love bite. And the longer he thought about it, the more it made sense.

He suddenly had the urge to make his intentions known to Hermione. He always thought she just wasn't open to the idea of having any relationship with anyone. It was why he had kept his feelings at bay and stuck around her as an annoying 'friend' who she would bicker with every once in a while. But now things are different. Hermione was having some sort of relations with Tom. He doesn't know how it happened or what exactly is the extent of that but he won't allow himself to be bested once again. He has already accepted that he will never beat Hermione. He was now glad to come only second to her. But he will _never_ accept being second to anyone else, especially when it comes to Hermione's affections.

It was time for him to stop acting like a child, and pursue Hermione as a man.

* * *

Apart from the first day, Hermione's first week at Hogwarts went off without a hitch. Following Harry's advice, Hermione had made sure to never be alone in the same place with Tom ever again. She asked for a copy of the addresses for the interview venues and emailed Tom as to how they were going to divide the work. It was unnecessary for the two of them to conduct interviews at the same time and in the same place. she reasoned. It would be more efficient to divide the work evenly between them and conduct the interviews separately. Tom didn't even get to protest as Hermione had proposed the same plan to their mentors and the latter approved of it. Tom had no choice but to follow Hermione's plan, and true enough, what was supposed to be finished in a week, was successfully completed by the two in three days. In the two remaining days of the week, Hermione helped Draco with his part of the work, leaving her barely seeing Tom at all.

Draco had been different ever since he joked about having feelings for Hermione. He acted so differently, Hermione was starting to doubt if he really had been joking earlier that week. It made her feel slightly uncomfortable, having never seen Draco in that light but she also didn't want to come off as presumptuous so she tried her utmost to act around him the way she had always acted, even if Draco wasn't doing the same.

Come Friday, when they were about to clock out, all the interns were called to one of the conference rooms for a little announcement. Their mentors invited them to the company's socials night, a weekly 'unwinding activity' Hogwarts apparently had to keep the employees in high spirits. Hermione wanted to decline, completely aware that she could not have any ounce of alcohol within her system as long as Tom was there. Her restraint had been pretty much non-existent just with Tom and her being alone in a confined space, what more if she had a dose of the traitorous liquid which lowers her inhibitions? She would not risk it. Nope. No way.

But her mentors didn't allow her to leave so she found herself sitting in a crowded pub amongst her mentors and co-interns, sipping timidly on a glass of water. She couldn't not go with them but she would _not_ drink.

"Alright ladies and gents, it's time for us to play a game!" Hermione groaned. How could a full grown adult still want to play drinking games?

Sirius Black, the head of the Legal Department, placed a tray of shot glasses containing clear liquid on their table. They all looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to elaborate on the rules of the 'game' he was proposing.

"Alright, kids. Here's what we're gonna do. We're gonna play Truth or Dare!" He excitedly said while winking at the interns. The latter group just groaned, all thinking about how such a childish man could possibly be a lawyer, and the head of the Legal Department of Hogwarts at that.

"Oh, don't be such spoil sports, and let's have a bit of fun, ya?" Sirius began to explain the mechanics of the game.

They were supposed to choose a drink from the tray without smelling it or tasting it before choosing. Whatever they choose first can't be returned. They're stuck with that drink for the round. The tray contained shots of water but two of them contained vodka. Whoever chooses the glass with vodka would have to choose Truth or Dare together.

The interns couldn't see what was so fun about Sirius' game but they weren't at liberty to say so. Hence, they just played along.

In the first round, Pansy Parkinson, a student from Beauxbatons Academy also taking International Relations, drank the glass with vodka along with Bella. The two of them chose dare, and having been drinking for about an hour now before they started this silly game, the two girls were dared to snog. The onlookers were all too happy with the sight of the two attractive women not having qualms against battling with each other's tongues. In fact, they were all too willing that Sirius had to physically break them apart to continue on with the game. The two women just winked at each other after that kiss. Hermione blushed, too sober for what was happening around her.

After three rounds of the game, Hermione had started to feel at ease. It was almost as if she knew which glasses to avoid in order to be spared from the game. But on the fourth round, she grimaced. Her taste buds were assaulted by the strong and bitter taste of vodka and her face started heating up as the liquid left a hot trail down her throat. She was almost too afraid to look up and see who got the other glass as cheers erupted from their table.

She didn't have to though because he made himself known by loosely putting his arm around her shoulder. She looked up and found herself staring at eager silver eyes.

"Dare." Draco said without even waiting for her to speak. Almost instantly, the table shouted at them to snog.

Draco wasted no time in lowering his head to Hermione's height to capture her lips in a mind-boggling kiss.

**A/N: **Okay, so maybe the 1-2 chapters left thing might not be accurate but I am for sure trying to wrap this up already.

I would like to dedicate this chapter to father time and baby new year who is making me want to make a spin-off of sorts of this story where Draco, Hermione, and Tom end up in triad (or a threesome at least) but we'll see.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, guys! Updates have been slower than before but at least they're a little longer now, yes? Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and putting this story on your alerts list. Hope you're all staying safe. Ciao!


	10. Try Me

This was not how Tom envisioned the night would go. The entire _week_ was not how Tom envisioned it would go.

In his time table, Hermione should already be squirming in her seat at the mere sight of him. But alas, for the umpteenth time since she insulted him, Hermione was nowhere near the state he wanted her to be in. If anything, she's even further away.

She succeeded in avoiding him the day after she kissed him. Succeeded in somehow making a plan so solid and logical, their mentors – associates of his who worked for him – had no choice but to agree with it and allow her to implement it. He doesn't know why he still gets surprised when Hermione ends up pushing him three steps backwards after he has made a single push forward. The woman was brilliant, and it angers him even more that he was yet to conquer her.

And now, this.

He had known that the blonde ferret now poking his tongue down Hermione's throat too eagerly fancied the latter. It was all too obvious to anyone with eyes and a brain properly functioning. But Tom hadn't paid him any mind, deciding that his schoolboy antics would never fly with Hermione. This, however. This was unacceptable. This was no longer schoolboy territory. In front of him were two grown adults quite actively snogging each other in front of a lot of people. Tom preened at the thought that he had kissed Hermione first – and better, if what he was looking at was any indication of it. But he glowered at the thought that nobody knew that he kissed her senseless first. That it was just their dirty little secret.

A great wave of possessiveness suddenly overcame Tom, and he 'accidentally' pushed the table forward, bumping the still snogging Draco and Hermione and spilling all the drinks in the table.

"Oops. Sorry about that. I think I've had one too many beers already." He smiled charmingly at the people on the table, looking nowhere near as drunk as he claimed himself to be. Draco and Hermione finally broke apart, and Draco glared at Tom while Hermione still stood in a daze.

"Looks like Granger drank quite a lot, too." Hermione's head snapped towards Tom's direction at the mention of her name, too dazed to remember she was still avoiding him. Tom approached her.

"We'll just go get fresh air."

Before Hermione or Draco could do anything, Tom grabbed Hermione by the hand and led her away from the table and out of the pub. Draco scowled.

* * *

"Tom, what do you think you're doing?!"

When the cold breeze hit Hermione's face, she finally snapped out of her stupor and realized she was being dragged by Tom. She flailed the hand Tom was holding to try to escape his grasp but failed. Soon after, she found herself in the all too familiar cage of Tom Riddle. They were in the alleyway by the pub.

She glared at him so fiercely, Tom swore he could see her hair snap up at him like Medusa's snakes. But he didn't back down. He glared back before addressing her in a dangerously low and ominous voice.

"What do you think _you're _doing?"

His breath on her face was warm. He smelled of malt and alcohol, with a hint of cigarette smoke. _Did he smoke? _Hermione couldn't help but wonder, completely forgetting that he asked her a question and that she asked him a question before that.

Tom's face grew even closer and he growled out, "Granger!" miffed at being ignored. She snapped out of her own thoughts again then looked at Tom.

"What?"

She looked impatient and just a little annoyed. This infuriated Tom even more. Was she no longer affected by him? Does his presence no longer unhinge her?

Did she _like_ snogging Draco?

He leaned closer towards her, and whispered in her ear. "Stop stoking the fire, Granger." He started nibbling on her ear, opting for the only sure fire way of undoing her.

But it didn't work this time.

She pushed him away, and Tom was too unguarded to resist. He was almost flung towards the other side of the alleyway. He glared at her again as she glared back.

"Stop fucking toying with me, Tom!" She shouted angrily at him. "Just leave me out of your sick game already. I don't want to play!" With that she gave him one more hard look before stomping back into the pub.

Tom didn't move from his spot and just stared at her retreating form.

"Fuck!"

His curse resounded in the dark alleyway.

* * *

When Hermione returned to their table, she immediately grabbed the nearest glass and chugged it – not leaving a single drop. And when she was done with that, she grabbed another and another, until Draco's hand shot up to stop her from drinking herself to unconsciousness. He was pretty sure tequila was not meant to be drank that quickly.

"Hey, hey, hey. Slow down, Granger. The drinks aren't going anywhere. I thought you didn't want to drink tonight? Or much, at least." He tried to tell Hermione over the loud noise of the pub, but her distressed and now most likely drunken state rendered her unable to hear him. She slowly turned towards Draco – cheeks flushed from the sudden and rapid intake of alcohol. She placed both her hands on Draco's face.

"Malfoy." She giggled, then lightly slapped him on the face.

"Ow."

"That's for snogging me earlier, you prat." She glared at him, but the drunken smile on her face just made it look like she was seducing him. Draco's body started to heat up as he gulped. He then smirked.

"Don't act like you didn't like it, Granger." He teasingly winked at her, before grabbing a glass of his own to take a shot. If he was going to flirt with Hermione, he was going to need more alcohol in his system for courage.

"Hmm." Hermione placed her hands in a thinking position before teasingly looking at him, "I'd give it a five out of ten." She laughed as Draco's mouth went agape.

"You take that back, Granger. I'm a good kisser! You should ask all the girls I've kissed!" Draco's cheeks were now tinged with pink, both as a result of alcohol, and Hermione's teasing.

"Eh. I've had better, Malfoy." She continued teasing him with that sexy smile and look, and it's what prompted Draco to say, "maybe you just need to refresh your memory, Granger. Wanna try again?" His expression made it seem like he was just teasing her, but his heart was racing and his mind was chanting 'please say yes' over and over again. He waited with bated breath if Hermione would flirt back and accept his proposal.

"Sure, Malfoy. But only to prove to you that my memory's perfect."

He ignored her jab, and went in for the kiss.

His kiss was initially urgent and all too consuming, but later on he slowed his pace to savor the feel and taste of her lips. He lightly nibbled on her lower lip, then gave it a gentle bite. Hermione moaned and slightly opened her mouth. He then slipped his tongue into her mouth and met with her tongue, swirling with it before grazing his tongue on the roof of her mouth. Hermione shivered as she wrapped her hands around Draco's neck to bring him closer to her. Draco inwardly cheered as he continued to engage her in the most French of all kisses. He sucked on her tongue and a wave of heat shot up in Hermione's core. She was starting to get wet from Draco's ministrations and Draco was already half hard. After one last nibble on her lower lip, Draco broke away from a still eyes-closed-Hermione.

He was smirking when she opened her eyes.

"How was that?" Draco was sure he would get a perfect score this time.

"I'd give it an 8 out of 10."

Draco was about to argue with her and call her a liar, but then she added,

"But if we get out of here, maybe I'll give you a chance to make it a 10."

His mouth went agape again, but he quickly recovered and grabbed her by the hand before enthusiastically dragging her along outside of the pub and into his car.

He finally got lucky.

* * *

"Are you sober enough to drive? How about we just call a designated driver?" Hermione was looking worriedly at Draco who was fumbling with his seat belt.

"I'm fine, Granger. I can drive."

Hermione didn't look convinced. "But you're fumbling."

Draco took a deep breath then slowly turned to Hermione.

"I'm not fumbling because I'm drunk, Granger. I have a pretty high tolerance." He paused as he seemed to internally argue with his mind. He then looked her in the eye.

"I'm fumbling because I honestly can't believe this is happening."

Hermione looked at him quizzically. "What? Us hooking up?" Draco winced. Well, that clarifies Hermione's stand then.

"Yeah…" He began uncertainly, but then he cleared his throat then smirked at her. "Who would have thought we'd end up snogging each other senseless, eh? And maybe even more?" He wiggled his eyebrows and Hermione laughed as she slapped him in the arm. "Just drive, Draco." His face warmed when she called him by his first name, but he reminded himself that this was just a hookup for her and to not get his hopes up.

He didn't fumble again as he drove to his flat.

* * *

He should've bought a flat that was closer to the pub.

His place was an hour away from Hogwarts and the pub, and while usually that didn't bother him, tonight it did. Hermione and him were finally going to go beyond mere friends to... being still friends but now with benefits. But that might not happen anymore because Hermione was starting to sober up and getting less and less sure of what they were about to do.

When they finally set foot on Draco's penthouse, Hermione awkwardly stood by the door as she looked everywhere but at Draco's direction.

Draco sighed.

"Want anything to drink, Granger?" Hermione's head snapped back at Draco. "Tea, perhaps?" She looked at him with grateful eyes then nodded.

_Guess I'll just prepare myself a cold bath then. _Draco sadly thought to himself as he made his way to the kitchen after instructing her to feel at home.

Hermione walked around Draco's very modern and sleek penthouse. It had floor-to-ceiling-windows that showed a marvelous view of London's skyline. Black leather furniture, and clean white walls. It very much screamed of the opulence Hermione always knew Draco had but never really flaunted.

She found herself staring at her reflection on one of the floor-to-ceiling-windows, and suddenly remembered why she was there in the first place. She groaned before hitting her forehead. She should really stop drinking alcohol. She somehow always ends up being a little too eager to get physical with anyone who propositions her. She's sure she was going to end up in some sleazy motel with an equally sleazy guy one of these days if she didn't learn how to control her alcohol intake and her physical urges. She hit herself again. She dreaded having to flake out on Draco.

She heard light footsteps approaching and she took a deep breath. What should she tell him? _Oh, hey Malfoy. I know we said we'd have a little bam-bam in the ham, but that was when we were both kind of drunk and y'know, out of our minds. Now we're not and we can both agree this is a crazy idea, right? So how about we just call it a night, and I'll see you Monday? Don't forget we have that report due at noon that day. Haha! _Even the way she said it in her head made her cringe.

Slowly, she turned towards Draco's direction and mentally prepared herself to give him her little speech. But she found herself slightly gaping at what she saw. Was she thinking that long?

Draco was now wearing very casual clothes – a very flattering muscle shirt and lounge trousers. He was also _barefoot_ and his hair was still slightly wet from the shower. For some reason, seeing Draco like this made her core clench.

"Hey, here's your tea. Sorry I took long. I felt filthy so I took a quick shower first. Hope you didn't wait that long." He shyly scratched the back of his ear after placing the tray on the coffee table in his living room. His biceps rippled as he raised his arm to scratch his ear. Hermione gulped.

She wasn't completely sober yet.

In a flash, Hermione bounded for Draco and kissed him. Draco stumbled back, and found himself falling unto the couch. Hermione straddled him as she continued to aggressively kiss him.

Draco was confused despite quickly getting aroused. When he separated from Hermione, he was sure that he was going to get the boot when he returned. That's why he decided to quickly wank off before seeing her. He was prepared to watch her pass everything that happened tonight as a result of alcohol, and graciously let her go.

He was not prepared for this, but he was _not _complaining.

Once he gathered himself, he flipped them so that he was now the one who was on top of her. He laid her properly on the couch before continuing their kiss. At Hermione's moan, he started to trail down towards her neck. God, her neck was so slim and long. He could spend a whole day just kissing the whole expanse of it. He started sucking on the side of her neck – right where he had spotted the love bite Tom have her the other day. He was going to mark her anew. He was going to completely erase Tom from her memories. Tonight, she was his. Tomorrow be damned.

"Granger, fuck. I love kissing your neck." He revered us he continued kissing and sucking her neck. Hermione giggled, causing her breasts to lightly graze Draco's chest.

"There are other parts of me that need your attention, Malfoy." Draco groaned. Who knew Hermione was such a seductress?

At her prompting, he started to make his way towards her clavicle, and down to her breasts. She still had on too many clothes. Without a word, he ripped off her button-up.

"Draco! You ruined my shirt!" He smirked then kissed her lightly on the nose.

"I'll buy you ten more of those, love." He slipped and momentarily froze but inwardly sighed in relief when Hermione didn't seem to have noticed or minded. She just giggled at him. Guess she really wasn't sober yet.

He unclasped her bra, deciding against ripping that off too. While he had shirts he could lend her tomorrow for when she leaves, he had no bra lying around for her to use, and he definitely didn't want Hermione going outside without a bra on. Nobody else should be able to see her in all her glory. Her globes are for his eyes alone.

He licked one nipple, and she mewled. Her breasts were really sensitive, and the warm sensation of Draco's tongue really heightened her senses. Draco started fondling and sucking on her breast in earnest as Hermione started to cup Draco's bulge. One nipple plopped from his mouth as he groaned.

"Christ, Granger. That felt good." She smiled up at him and winked. She removed his top and ogled at his ripped form. Since when did Draco Malfoy look so delectable? She licked her lips as she slowly placed her arms on his pecs, and down to his abs in a deliciously slow manner. Draco's breath hitched at Hermione's feather light and teasing touches. He was unbearably hard now, and he wanted nothing more than to feel Hermione's hand on his length. Or her mouth. He groaned again, and Hermione smirked.

Hermione trailed her hand up towards Draco's neck and unto his pulse point. With her other hand, she guided his head towards her. She began to slowly lick the length of his neck and up to his pulse point. "Hm. I quite like your neck, too, Malfoy." She smirked into his neck before lightly sucking on it. Draco moaned. _Gods. This woman will be the death of me._

Not taking it anymore, Draco, abruptly stood up and scooped Hermione into his arms. He started walking with her towards the direction of his room.

"No more teasing, Granger. It's time I show you why I deserve more than a 10."

Hermione blushed.

* * *

**A/N: **Before you all rip me to shreds, let me just say that when I first started writing this, I had every intention to make Tomione endgame. I had a vague idea of how this was gonna turn out, but as I write this, things are starting to get less and less clear. I haven't been reading HP fanfiction for quite a while now and I've forgotten just how much chemistry dramione actually had. Writing this made me remember though. So... I'm sorry but at this point, I'm really just writing by feel now. So this may have a dramione endgame, or a tomione endgame, or maybe even a triad. And it's going to be longer now too. Probably. Aghh. Sorry! I hope you all don't mind that I'm anticipating what's going to happen as much as you guys. It feels like this fic now has a life of its own and I'm just it's messenger or something. I hope you still enjoyed this chapter, and won't mind the uncertainty of everything.

I hope you are all safe and well. Ciao!


	11. Taste Test

Draco's room was every bit as sleek and modern as the rest of his penthouse, but Hermione was unable to pay much attention to the details of it, too busy returning Draco's feverish kisses. Even as he gently lay her down his bed, their tongues remained in a fierce battle for dominance. Both of them were high on their arousal, keen on divesting each other of every article of clothing. Their lips parted momentarily only when Draco chucked off his shirt, and again after Hermione slowly raised herself in a sitting position to maneuver Draco into lying down. But soon enough, she straddled him and their lips connected again.

"Malfoy," Hermione breathed out as she now trailed her lips down to his neck, her hands, inching their way to his abs. "Before we go any further I have something I have to tell you," she said all this in between kisses on his neck and clavicle. Draco was only half listening, too absorbed by the sensations Hermione was evoking. _Of course she'd be dominant even in bed._ He couldn't help but marvel.

She was kissing his chest now, experimentally licking one nipple to gauge whether he liked it or not. By the shuddering moan he gave, Hermione figured he did. So she gave the same attention to the other one. Draco was panting heavily now, and his erection was twitching prominently from where it touched her covered core. Hermione was getting drunk on the power she was now holding over Draco. She quite liked it. It felt nice to finally be the one in control of the situation.

It felt nice to finally be the Tom Riddle in the situation.

Hermione accidentally bit Draco a little too hard upon the realization that she was thinking about Tom while she was about to have sex with Draco. Instead of a groan of pain, however, what greeted Hermione's ears was a groan of pleasure. She arched her brow at Draco. _Is he a masochist?_

She tried to test her theory. "Malfoy, I'm going to suck you off now, but no matter what, you can't come until I tell you to. Is that clear?" Her voice was clear and authoritative, and Draco actually whimpered before giving a small nod. Hermione smirked, before giving him a light kiss on the cheek. "Good boy." Draco flushed, and his cock twitched.

Hermione trailed kisses on his neck and chest again before heading to the tops of his trousers. Upon reaching it, instead of immediately taking his trousers and pants off, she lightly cupped his cock through his trousers. "Hmm. You're quite big, Malfoy." Draco preened at the compliment. It wasn't the first time he heard it. He wasn't new to the world of one night stands after all. But it was the first time he heard it said in such a tone — condescendingly appreciative would be the way to put it. He liked it. It was new. Different. Thrilling.

It insanely turned him on.

When Hermione finally tugged on his trousers to take it off, he held his breath in anticipation. He thought she would remove his pants next but then she licked his shaft through his pants instead, all the while lightly cupping his bollocks. Draco groaned — both in pleasure and out of frustration.

"Grangeeer." He whined, and Hermione slightly squeezed his bollocks in warning. Draco sucked in a breath.

"Ah, ah, ah. While we're here, you shall address me as Ma'am." Hermione's face was stern but she was also closely observing Draco's reaction to what she said. This will define their bed dynamic. This is the point where she'll be able to confirm whether Draco did indeed have the tendency to be a masochist.

He gulped, before choking out, "Y-yes, Ma'am." Hermione smiled.

She was surprised by Draco's masochism, but she was also surprised with herself. Whenever she and her ex-boyfriend, Ron, would get intimate, she had been pretty passive. But that might also be because she later realized how little she was actually attracted to him — so little, she would literally close up whenever they attempted to have penetrative sex. It's why she remained a virgin despite having done almost everything else. She wasn't attracted to her first sexual partner enough for her to completely let go, but attracted enough for foreplay.

She then wondered, was she attracted to Draco enough for her to lose her virginity to him?

Draco let out a staggered breath as Hermione finally removed his pants and wrapped her hands around his cock.

_Maybe not_. At Draco's current state, they'd probably only end the night with foreplay, but she didn't really mind.

She gave his shaft a long and slow lick before pressing a light kiss on its tip. It was already leaking with pre-cum, and Hermione eagerly licked it off of him, all while looking Draco straight in the eye. His eyes rolled back as he groaned. "Granger, you're killing me here." She grazed her teeth on his shaft. Draco yelped again. "What did I say about what you're supposed to call me?" Hermione held his shaft to her face as she looked at him challengingly.

"M-ma'am. I'm sorry, Ma'am. I forgot. It won't happen again, Ma'am."

Hermione rewarded him with another long lick, and then she stopped.

"What's your safe word, Malfoy?"

Draco gulped, unsure of what to tell her. He blurted out the first thing that came into his mind.

"Apple?"

Hermione nodded.

"The very moment you say that word, I'll stop. Okay?" Draco nodded in turn — nervous and excited for what's to come at the same time.

"Where are your ties, Malfoy?" He gulped before pointing towards the direction of his dresser. "They're on the first drawer at the bottom."

Hermione sauntered her way to his dresser, and slowly opened his drawer. She picked out the first two ties she saw, then made her way back to Draco. She was smirking at him, and Draco's throat was running dry upon the realization of what she was planning to do.

Was he really going to allow her to just tie him up?

"Raise your hands, Malfoy." He did as she asked without question.

Apparently he was.

Hermione expertly tied Draco's wrists to each bedpost. When she was done, she took a step back to marvel at her work. What a sight it was to see Draco Malfoy sprawled on his own bed, naked and raging for Hermione Granger.

Hermione licked her lips as she started to get rid of all her remaining clothing except for her underwear, which, to Draco's delight was a racy green thong.

She straddled him as she started to kiss him again. His cock was poking her core at just the perfect spot, but she halted his hip's movements. She grasped his neck, choking him, as she ground her covered but wet core unto his cock in an excruciatingly slow pace. "You are not to move until I tell you to. You got that, Malfoy?" Draco's pleasure was at its peak just from Hermione grinding on him and the added delirium of his airways getting cut off. He could only nod — too far gone in pleasure to even think about how crazy the situation was.

Hermione let his neck go as she planted a sweet kiss on his cheek before patting the same spot. "Good boy. So obedient. You deserve a reward." Before Draco could catch his breath, Hermione was facing his cock, and she had positioned her crotch right in front of his face. Hermione started to suck him hard. Her mouth was so warm and wet, Draco didn't feel like his cock was inside a mouth. It was the best blowjob he's ever had and he was more than eager to return the favor. But as he was about to lift his head to lick her covered slit, he suddenly remembered what she ordered him to do a while ago. He was not allowed to move unless she told him so.

But what would happen if he disobeyed?

He risked it. His curiosity overcoming him. At the back of his mind, he was also anticipating the kind of punishment Hermione was capable of.

He gave her slit a little sniff before hungrily licking the whole length of it. Hermione shivered and moaned, the vibrations causing Draco to also release a satisfied groan. The groan was quickly stolen from his throat, however, when Hermione quickly jumped off of the bed to look at him disapprovingly.

_Uh oh._

"Bad Malfoy. What did I just tell you a while ago?"

Draco cleared his throat. "You told me not to move until you tell me to." She arched her brow challengingly at him. "Ma'am." He quickly added.

"It seems you're not learning." She turned her back to him as she slowly took off her thong, giving him a clear view of her clean-shaven pussy which was already dripping wet. Draco's eyes darkened as he licked his lips. _Totally worth it_, he thought to himself.

But then Hermione turned to face him again with the most stern expression. She crawled back on his bed and kneeled with both her legs on either side of his. She held his cock, then he watched in awe as she tied her thong around his shaft and his bollocks. He felt the bloodflow in his cock halt and he grew harder. He looked at her with questioning eyes, and she smirked. "With this on, you won't be able to cum no matter how much you want to." Hermione winked at him before crawling closer to his upper body. She leaned closer towards his ear and whispered, "and what I'm about to do to you will make you beg me to allow you to come in seconds." She nibbled his ear before starting her delicious torture of him.

* * *

Hermione woke with a raging hangover and a palpable sense of shame and regret. She was hoping that the images now flashing rapidly in her head were just figments of her imagination but the warm body sleeping beside her stated otherwise.

She couldn't recognize the person she transformed into last night.

Hermione was a lot of things, but a seductress with a penchant for BDSM was not one of them. And yet, she couldn't help but acknowledge that she did have fun being that person last night.

She turned to the still sleeping Draco beside her. Poor thing passed out as soon as she finally released him from her DIY cockring. She never knew the little tidbit Ginny had once laughingly told her about during their occassional girl talks would come in handy.

She suddenly decided not to see Harry for a while. Harry begging for his release was an image Hermione did not want to entertain.

She was then pulled from her thoughts by Draco's slight stirring. Her heart started to race. _What am I supposed to do in this situation? What are the rules for one night stands? Wait, is this even a one night stand when we didn't really have sex? But what does it mean to have sex anyway? Is it only sex if there's penetration or does what we did last night already count as sex? _Her train of thought was getting farther and farther from its original track, and by the time Draco cracked an eye open to look at her, Hermione still had not yet decided how to address the situation.

"Morning, Granger." Draco sat up from the bed and stretched out his arms. Hermione's eyes followed the movement of his chest muscles but then quickly looked away upon realizing what she was doing.

"Or should I still call you, 'Ma'am'?" Draco winked at her then lightly chuckled when her head suddenly turned to his direction and her face flushed in embarrassment.

"Malfoy, I'm sor—" before she could finish her apology, Draco had her pinned down on the bed.

"No apologies necessary, Granger. It was definitely a first for me, but I can't say I didn't like it." He leaned closer towards her, and then whispered into her neck, "but I really _do_ want to show you that perfect ten I was gloating about. Will you let me?" He started nibbling on her neck but then froze when she replied.

"No."

Draco immediately turned to face her. "Why not? Are you about to tell me last night was just a mistake brought about by alcohol and all that load of codswallop?" Draco's smile was teasing but his eyes showed that he was hurt.

Hermione rolled her eyes before lightly shoving Draco away and sitting up, blanket held securely to her chest. "Oh, don't be so dramatic, Malfoy. While I do admit I wasn't one hundred percent sober last night, everything that happened was consensual and I did in fact enjoy myself too even though that was also quite new to me." She paused, registering Draco's befuddled face. She then sighed before continuing, "I said no because I haven't told you something."

Draco arched his brow in question.

"I'm a virgin, Malfoy."

It took Draco approximately one minute to laugh in Hermione's face, and it took the latter just a second after his laugh to grab the pillow beside her and hit him.

"What are you laughing at?" Hermione screeched as she continued to hit him with a pillow.

"No offense, Granger, but that's the biggest load of bullocks I've heard all year." Draco replied in between laughs, unsuccessfully shielding himself from Hermione's onslaught.

"I'm not lying, Malfoy! How dare you doubt me!"

After a few more hits, Draco was finally able to grab both of Hermione's hands to stop her from assaulting him any further.

In the midst of Hermione's violence, neither noticed the blanket covering Hermione gradually slip down, but when the flurry of movements were over, Draco did notice. He clasped both of Hermione's hands with one of his, and pinned them above her head as he made her lean down on the bedpost.

"Sorry, Granger, but I really find it quite hard to believe that an extremely sensual," he looked at the whole length of her body appreciatively, eyes now darkening and cock once again bustling to life, "and sensitive," he brought his head down to her chest and licked one nipple. As expected, she moaned. "Little minx like you would still be a virgin." He was about to suck on her nipple, but in a flash, Hermione was able to flip them around and now she was the one straddling Draco.

"That's 'Ma'am' to you, Malfoy." She smirked in triumph at his bewildered face. She then crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"If we're going to do this, we're going to do it _my way_. Got a problem with that, Malfoy?"

He returned her smirk.

"No, Ma'am."

* * *

When Tom arrived in Hogwarts, he had already concocted a new plan in handling Hermione. However, it all went down the drain when he saw her in the lift looking all chummy with Draco. This was not what infuriated him however.

It was not unusual for the two of them to share the lift. They did share the same office and hence were heading to the same direction. It was also not improbable for them to arrive at the same time, nor was their friendliness the issue. No, these weren't the problem at all.

What made Tom's blood boil was the poorly concealed love bite on Hermione's neck and the matching one on Draco's.

At first, he wanted to think that the mark on her neck was still the one he left a whole week ago since it was in the exact same spot. But the bruise was all too fresh for a mark that was supposed to be a week-old already. Tom doubted the one he gave her even lasted that long. Which again made his fury bubble to the surface. _How dare that ferret mark her over where I staked my claim of her. How dare she mark that ferret too! _He was not at all happy at how nothing seemed to be going his way where Hermione was involved.

So when the lift stopped at Draco and Hermione's floor, Tom wasted no time in pulling Hermione back just when she was about to head out with Draco. And before Draco noticed what happened, the door to the lift already closed.

**A/N: **This chapter was so hard to write and I feel like it shows. I really squeezed out all my imaginative juices heon this one because I have zero practical knowledge of BDSM. I was very surprised with how dramione's bed dynamic turned out tbh. What I planned was nowhere near the outcome. Should I just say, before I knew it, the stage was already set? I've made up my mind to make this a triad fic — but one where the main story would be _how_ the triad came to be, and honestly it's a very hard thing to do. But I have the basic premises figured out and I think from this chapter, you guys can figure out where I'm heading, too. But anyway, that's enough of my ramblings. I hope you guys liked this chapter! Thank you for the continuous support by reading and leaving reviews. Special thanks to the guests and users who expressed that they're okay with the pairing change. Much love to you all! Hoping that you are all safe and well. Ciao!


End file.
